Brits aren’t spending enough – time for Splash Out to Help Out Opinion Household debt has declined and people have stopped spending on productive things like home improvements but also in leisure. That’s bad news for the public finances, so the government should look at ways to incentivise spending, says Tim Sarson Brits have stopped spending. After the great financial crisis in 2008 we collectively decided to zip [...]
How to tax in an energy crisis Opinion Whether the government wants to maximise North Sea oil extraction or home grown renewables, tax policy can help, says Tim Sarson Recent global events seem to have a knack of happening in places that send energy prices through the roof. Last time it was the loss of piped gas from Russia into Europe. Now it’s [...]
If Reeves wants Britain to lead in AI, she must offer tax incentives Opinion The government is aware of the levers it’s able to pull to compete on AI: planning, electricity connections, visas, higher education policy, direct subsidies. But where’s tax? Asks Tim Sarson A couple of weeks ago one of those mini news stories came along, the sort that is so neatly zeitgeisty that it demands further consideration. [...]
Global minimum tax holds despite Trump’s exemption January 21, 2026 Rumours of the death of Pillar 2, the OECD’s global minimum tax, appear to have been exaggerated, but the international, rules-based order may be discovering its limits, says Tim Sarson Businesses across the globe welcomed in 2026 with the news that the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) had published the long-awaited update to [...]
Is Budget speculation a bad thing? November 20, 2025 Testing measures before the big day can be helpful, but the upcoming Budget has been a feeding frenzy, making it impossible to distinguish fan fiction from genuine policy, says Tim Sarson The Autumn Budget speculation season has become rather a circus. I thought last year was unusually long and noisy but 2025 takes things to [...]
These are the taxes Reeves will raise at the Budget October 23, 2025 There won’t be many rabbits out of Reeves’ hat at the upcoming Budget but here’s what to expect: gambling taxes, windfall taxes and an income tax national insurance swap, says Tim Sarson I remember the good old days of Budget predictions. We used to get our thinking caps on about a fortnight before the event, [...]
Is Britain open for business or not? September 25, 2025 Britain’s tax rate is neutral at best when it comes to attracting investment, and as international competitors up their game, we may need to go further just to stand still, says Tim Sarson How attractive is the UK as a place to invest? It’s confusing, isn’t it? In the last few weeks we’ve had a [...]
Tax: What should Reeves do in the Autumn Budget? August 27, 2025 As rumours swirl about which taxes Rachel Reeves may target this autumn, Tim Sarson lays out what the Chancellor can (and should) do.
Can a global minimum tax survive Trump? July 30, 2025 As the G7 exempts the US from the global minimum tax – otherwise known as Pillar 2 – experts are asking when a global tax stops being global? Say Tim Sarson Last month I opened this column talking about an announcement from the German government about a proposal to cut their federal corporation tax rate. [...]
Have developed countries discovered the ideal corporate tax rate? June 26, 2025 International tax was once a veritable jungle of exotic regimes, but now many jurisdictions seem to have settled on a natural equilibrium of around 25 per cent, says Tim Sarson An interesting and rather consequential piece of tax policy from the new German coalition government might have slipped under your radar recently – they are [...]
