So, yes, it will cost a lot to give all those strikers and others decent, or at least cost-of-living pay rises. But there’s a silver lining/sting in the tail, depending whether you’re the government or a now-better-paid worker. The freezing of tax allowances means that many who never dreamed of entering the elite ranks of high rate taxpayers will find themselves returning some of their hard-won extra pay as extra tax. I’d guess the books would rebalance fairly quickly, if nothing changes in the meantime. Noone who’s not a high rate taxpayer has much sympathy for those that are, and a future government anywhere to the left of the current bunch isn’t going to do much to reverse things. The same is true of the other stealthy rises/freezes in Inheritance, Capital Gains and Dividend tax, where the plan is the same, to pick our pockets, in the words of Mr Scrooge, rather more than once a year, and without us realising. Or so they think.
“Reeves backs down on plans to cut ISA limit”
So it looks as though Cash ISAs are safe for the moment (FTM – is that a thing?) Rachel has apparently ‘bowed to pressure’ from the banks and building societies and decided not to reduce the allowance to £4,000 for cash and to keep the £20,000 parity with Stocks and Shares ISAs. Bowed also to common sense, I’d say.
