‘A budget for the 1%’: government accused of huge tax cut for super-wealthy
The government stands accused of introducing a “simply staggering, huge tax cut for richer households” that will leave “the super-wealthy laughing all the way to the actual bank”, while allowing hundreds of thousands of already-struggling families to fall deeper into poverty.
On Friday, Kwasi Kwarteng, the chancellor, announced a string of tax giveaways and other measures that economists and campaigners claim will hugely benefit the super-rich at the expense of hardworking people.
The measures include:
Scrapping the 45p additional tax rate on earnings above £150,000.
Axing the cap on bankers’ bonuses.
Scrapping the planned rise in corporation tax to 25%.
Doubling the stamp duty “holiday” on property purchases to £250,000.
Allowing the overseas wealthy to shop duty free anywhere in the UK – not just at airports.
Axing the planned rise in national insurance contributions.
Tightening the benefits rules to make it harder for part time workers on universal credit.
The combined package of measures announced in the mini-budget means that someone who currently makes £1m will gain £55,220 a year, while someone earning £20,000 will be just £157 better off, according to calculations by the Resolution Foundation.
Torsten Bell, the chief executive of the thinktank, said the policies “amount to a simply staggering, huge tax cut for richer households”.
Bell described the mini-budget as socially divisive, and said almost 45% of the £45bn worth of tax cuts would “go to the richest 5% alone, who will be £8,560 better off”.
“In contrast, just 12% of the gains will go to the poorest half of households, who will be £230 better off on average next year.”
There are 3,519 bankers working in the UK making more than €1m a year (£880,000) according to the
Read more on theguardian.com
