“Treasury responds to pension tax relief speculation”

Jul 12, 2018 | Tax

An independent (financial adviser’s) view

Another year, another rumour that pension tax relief will be cut. Apparently, May has given Hammond ‘free rein’ to raise £20bn for the NHS, and once again pensions are a soft target. Now they’re pretty much compulsory in the workplace, making them more expensive js an easy tax-take. Rather like taxing car insurance premiums, with the usual argument that it’s those fat cats ‘with the broadest shoulders’ who will suffer most. Trouble is, the level at which one becomes an obese feline is reducing year on year; and, alas, it’s likely to be as ineffective as Boris’s £350m per week.

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“Rachel Reeves may be forced to raise taxes”

“Rachel Reeves may be forced to raise taxes”

Why did she/they (in the old sense) think that tinkering around with IHT and CGT would be enough to sort out the NHS; and the potholes; and…and the list goes on. My guess is  that they asked the Treasury for a list of anything not involving income tax that they could get away with lightly, although they should already have learned from the winter fuel stuff that all publicity is not good publicity.