A National Audit Office report says HMRC was owed £43.8 billion by 8.2 million taxpayers at the end of 2025–26 and estimates that 46% of the balance may never be recovered.
Charlotte Mercer · 2 min readFlutter Entertainment has announced proposals for up to 1,400 redundancies across its UK and Ireland business, attributing the restructuring to higher UK gambling taxes.
Charlotte Mercer · 2 min readThe IMF has urged Chancellor John Healey to consider welfare, pension and tax-system reforms before increasing taxes on banks ahead of the 28 October Budget.
Staff member · 3 min readMinisters have rejected a cross-party committee recommendation to extend employer National Insurance relief to all workers under 25, amid concerns over youth employment costs.
Staff member · 2 min readResolution Foundation estimates the Chancellor’s fiscal headroom has fallen from £24bn to £12bn and recommends around £8bn in tax reforms ahead of the Budget.
Charlotte Mercer · 2 min readThe IFS estimates that protecting departmental budgets and raising defence spending could require around £35bn in tax rises or benefit cuts.
Charlotte Mercer · 2 min readThe Conservatives would exempt main homes left to direct descendants and raise the individual inheritance-tax allowance to £500,000, allowing couples to pass on their home plus another £1 million tax-free.
Charlotte Mercer · 3 min readThe Conservatives have unveiled a sweeping deregulation programme which they claim could cut the cost of a new-build home by up to £50,000, including abolishing the Environment Agency and Natural England as separate bodies.
Charlotte Mercer · 4 min readSir Ed Davey has promised £17 billion of income-tax cuts by the end of the next Parliament, funded through growth the Liberal Democrats believe would follow Britain rejoining the EU Single Market and a customs union.
Charlotte Mercer · 4 min readUK public-sector borrowing reached £77.3 billion between April and August, placing it £8.1 billion above the Office for Budget Responsibility's forecast.
Charlotte Mercer · 4 min readKemi Badenoch has pledged that a future Conservative government would restore tax-free shopping for overseas visitors, reversing a policy abolished while she was a Treasury minister.
Charlotte Mercer · 4 min readThe Liberal Democrats have proposed a £250 million-a-year Online Crime Agency funded by a new levy on large technology and generative-AI companies.
Charlotte Mercer · 5 min readRegional mayors across England are to be given powers to impose an Overnight Visitor Levy on accommodation, with money raised retained for local investment.
Charlotte Mercer · 3 min readReform UK plans investor meetings in London and New York as Robert Jenrick pledges more than £100 billion of spending reductions in the party's first 100 days in government.
Charlotte Mercer · 4 min read