Britain considers taxing the wealth of the rich to balance the budget.

Illustration photo.

The government will shift to raising taxes on assets instead of income in the upcoming Budget, a move aimed at getting the best- off to contribute more to balance the country's struggling budget.

Speaking at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) meeting in Washington, Ms. Reeves emphasized that those with “the broadest shoulders” (meaning the wealthiest) should pay a fair share of tax. However, she also made it clear that high annual incomes would not be the primary target. Instead, the focus would be on “wealth,” which is clearly distinct from wage income.

The comments have raised concerns that the government is preparing to target assets such as pension funds or family homes to plug a budget hole caused by changes to welfare reform and rising public borrowing costs.

Official data shows that households with the most wealth tend to be those who have reached or passed retirement age. Specifically, the median wealth of households headed by people aged 65 to 74 is more than £500,000 (about $671,710). This is significantly higher than the 45-54 age group, which has just under £302,000, and the 25-34 age group, which has just under £110,000.

To calm the public, Ms Reeves ruled out a targeted wealth tax. She explained that the UK already has a number of taxes on wealth and the wealthy. She cited actions in last year’s Budget, such as imposing VAT on private schools, removing the non-resident exemption and extending taxes to private aircraft.

Economists say Ms Reeves will need to raise around £30bn in taxes to balance the books amid inflation and high interest rates. Her budgetary space is currently very thin, at just £9.9bn, putting pressure on her to find new sources of revenue. She has admitted she would like more room, but that would require a trade-off between raising taxes or cutting spending on essential public services like health .

In an effort to restore business confidence, the Chancellor also pledged not to raise taxes on banks. She acknowledged that the tax burden on the banking sector in London was higher than in other financial centers such as Amsterdam, Frankfurt and Dublin. She stressed that financial services were one of Britain's great success stories and the government was committed to maintaining a competitive environment.

As well as balancing the budget, the government is also focusing on fighting inflation, which is currently running at 3.8%, almost double the Bank of England's (BoE) target of 2%. Ms Reeves said the government would continue to act to "keep prices down" and ease "pressure on family finances", such as freezing prescription drug charges.

Against this complex backdrop, signals from Ms Reeves suggest the next Budget will focus on redistributing the tax burden, asking those who own the most wealth to shoulder greater responsibility for the country's fiscal stability.

Source: https://vtv.vn/anh-can-nhac-danh-thue-tai-san-nguoi-giau-de-can-doi-ngan-sach-100251017190502782.htm