Angela Rayner gives fresh hint of tax rises for rich under Labour

Angela Rayner has hinted at tax hikes for the rich if Labour wins the next general election.

The party’s deputy leader criticised Rishi Sunak for offering tax breaks to the wealthiest while “pushing the burden on working families”.

She accused the Conservative government of looking after the “top one per cent”, and stressed that Labour’s priority would be supporting “working people”.

Ms Rayner’s remarks left little doubt Labour is planning a tax raid on the richest to support those less well-off if in power after a general election which is expected next year.

The party took aim at chancellor Jeremy Hunt’s decision to scrap the tax-free limit on pension savings, which previously stood at £1.07m. Ms Rayner has called it a “giveaway” to the richest and Labour figures revealed it would take an average worker 400 years to benefit from the tax cut.

The party has pledged to reverse Mr Hunt’s policy if it wins the next general election. Ms Rayner declined to say whether Labour would pursue other measures such as increasing capital gains or income tax, adding that the party would spell out its plans ahead of the election.

But, speaking to the BBC, she said: “Under the Conservatives, the wealthiest are being looked after, whether through non-dom tax status or tax breaks for the wealthiest.

“Our priority would be to help working people, not the wealthiest. The government is pushing the burden on working families - that is not fair.

“Come the next election, the choice will be clear: continue with the Conservatives who are helping the wealthiest, or Labour who would make working people better off.”

Labour has also promised to scrap non-dom status if it wins power after The Independent revealed Mr Sunak’s wife was benefiting from the tax status. It believes scrapping the “loophole” would raise £3.2 billion per year.

But Labour is at loggerheads over what to do with capital gains tax – a levy paid on the profit made by selling an asset such as property or shares. Shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves has denied she plans to increase the tax, while Ms Rayner has suggested the current rate is too low.

Ms Reeves said last month: “I don’t have any plans to increase capital gains tax.

“There are people who have built up their own businesses who maybe at retirement want to sell that business.

“They may not have had huge income throughout their life if they’ve reinvested in their business, but this is their retirement pot of money.

“And we also have said we want Britain to be the best place to start and grow a business.”

The row came after Mr Sunak released a summary of his tax affairs, which showed that his tax rate was about 22 per cent because most of his earnings came from capital gains, which are taxed at a lower rate than income. Ms Rayner hit out at a tax system in which she said “the prime minister pays a far lower tax rate than working people”.