Highlights
- Green energy founder Dale Vince and solicitor Stephen Kinsella back tax rises on the wealthy.
- Over 85 millionaires join Patriotic Millionaires UK campaign for one-off wealth tax.
- Budget uncertainty causes house sales to stall, impacting construction and apprenticeships.
More than 85 millionaires have joined Patriotic Millionaires UK campaign supporting higher taxes on "the super-rich", as debate intensifies ahead of the upcoming Budget.
Among them are Dale Vince, founder of renewable energy company, Ecotricity and one of Britain's top 100 taxpayers, and Gloucestershire solicitor Stephen Kinsella, who have both backed the Patriotic Millionaires UK campaign. The group is demanding a one-off tax on wealth exceeding £10 m.
Vince, a major Labour Party donor told BBC that there's a great disparity in our country between people who can't feed themselves and people who have a great deal of wealth. Our tax system created it and perpetuates it, people like me should pay more, it's as simple as that, he added.
Mr Kinsella, a lawyer, echoed this sentiment, arguing that the government "needs more money" and those funds must come from taxes. He told BBC that most of us want to live in a fairer society. Either I will pay it, or somebody else will pay it, he added.
Chancellor Reeves appeared to rule out a specific wealth tax at the Labour Party conference in September. "We already have taxes on wealthy people; I don't think we need a standalone wealth tax," she told Bloomberg TV.
Budget uncertainty hits housing market
Meanwhile, prolonged speculation about Budget 2025 tax changes is causing significant disruption in the housing sector. Lindsey Young, chief executive of electrical fitters Clarkson Evans, which trains 300 apprentices, warned that potential buyers are "sitting on their hands" until tax policies are clarified.
Housebuilders will only build what they can sell, and at the moment their sales rates are much lower than usual, Young told BBC.
Phil Smith, managing director of Business West, which represents over 10,000 small firms, confirmed the problem extends across multiple sectors noted that the issue spans several sectors including farmers, family businesses, limited liability partnerships, landlords. Every time the Treasury attention turns on a sector, they stop doing anything, he added.
A Treasury spokesperson added that the government 'does not comment on speculation outside of fiscal events', adding that ministers are focused on "cutting waiting lists, cutting national debt and cutting the cost of living".
