Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Rishi Sunak’s ‘tax cut’ won't give relief to millions of middle-income earners as National Insurance rise

Prime Minister Boris Johnson  announced a 1.25 percentage points increase in National Insurance last September.

Rishi Sunak’s ‘tax cut’ won't give relief to millions of middle-income earners as National Insurance rise

Millions of Britons in the higher income category will have to fork out more towards National Insurance from July this year, despite the increase in the threshold for the contribution.

In March, chancellor Rishi Sunak announced that the income threshold for National Insurance - a tax aimed at social welfare - would go up from £9,568 a year to £12,570, effective from July 6. The threshold will remain frozen at the level till 2026.

The announcement had come when the chancellor was under pressure to scrap the 1.25 per cent hike in National Insurance that compounded the financial woes of people, already smarting under the surging inflation.

The rise in the threshold, hailed by Sunak as an effective “tax cut”, means 30 million people will pay less tax, while around 2.2 million will have no obligation to contribute.

But it also means that people earning £50,000 or above will pay more in terms of National Insurance contributions this year than in the 2021-22 tax year, The Telegraph said.

Sean McCann, Chartered Financial Planner at NFU Mutual, said the increase in the contributions will affect the “squeezed middle” who have to contend with frozen income tax thresholds and the withdrawal of child benefits.

As the tax thresholds remain frozen until 2026, people earning £30,000 will end up paying an extra £1,816 in income tax and National Insurance contributions over the next five years, according to Interactive Investor.

While the 1.25 per cent tax hike affected all, the rise in the National Insurance threshold did come as a small relief for lower-income people, resulting in annual savings of £330 per year or £27.50 a month.

Nimesh Shah of the accountancy firm Blick Rothenberg told The Telegraph that the government should do away with the 1.25 per cent increase for basic-rate taxpayers and raise the income tax thresholds to reflect the inflation.

More For You

Police arrest five after anti-asylum protesters target Heathrow hotel

Anti-migrant protesters demonstrate outside the Cladhan Hotel on August 30, 2025 in Falkirk, Scotland. (Photo by Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images)

Police arrest five after anti-asylum protesters target Heathrow hotel

BRITISH police said they arrested five people on Saturday (30) after masked men tried to force their way into a hotel used by asylum-seekers, a day after the government won a court ruling on the use of another hotel to house migrants.

Two groups of anti-asylum protesters marched to the Crowne Plaza Hotel near Heathrow Airport before some demonstrators tried to break in, London's Metropolitan Police force said.

Keep ReadingShow less
Modi backs peaceful Ukraine settlement in call with Zelenskyy

Volodymyr Zelenskiy (L) and Narendra Modi

Modi backs peaceful Ukraine settlement in call with Zelenskyy

INDIAN prime minister Narendra Modi reaffirmed his support for a peaceful settlement in Ukraine during a telephone conversation with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Modi's office said.

Zelenskiy, speaking in his nightly video address on Saturday (30), said Modi supported Ukraine's call for a ceasefire in the war with Russia and hoped that notion would be heard at the forthcoming Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit in China.

Keep ReadingShow less
Modi says "peace and stability" achieved on China border in Xi meeting

India's prime minister Narendra Modi shakes hands with Chinese president Xi Jinping during a meeting on the sidelines of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit in Tianjin, China, August 31, 2025. India's Press Information Bureau/Handout via REUTERS

Modi says "peace and stability" achieved on China border in Xi meeting

INDIAN prime minister Narendra Modi said New Delhi was committed to improving ties with Beijing in a key meeting with China's president Xi Jinping on the sidelines of a regional security forum on Sunday (31).

Modi is in China for the first time in seven years to attend a two-day meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, along with Russian president Vladimir Putin and other leaders from Central, South and Southeast Asia and the Middle East in a show of Global South solidarity.

Keep ReadingShow less
wasim bashir

Bashir retired from the force while under investigation but will still face misconduct proceedings. (Photo credit: West Yorkshire Police)

West Yorkshire Police

Former West Yorkshire Police officer jailed for misconduct

A FORMER West Yorkshire Police officer has been sentenced to two years and three months in prison after being convicted of misconduct in a public office.

Wasim Bashir, 55, who worked as a detective constable in Bradford District, was found guilty of one count of misconduct in a public office for forming a sexual relationship with a female victim of crime. He was sentenced at Sheffield Crown Court on Friday, 29 August.

Keep ReadingShow less
Epping protests

Protesters calling for the closure of The Bell Hotel, which was housing asylum seekers, gather outside the council offices in Epping on August 8, 2025. (Photo: Getty Images)

Getty Images

Over a dozen councils plan legal action despite Home Office court win

Highlights:

  • Court of Appeal has overturned injunction blocking use of Epping hotel for asylum seekers.
  • Judges say human rights obligations outweigh local safety concerns.
  • At least 13 councils preparing legal action despite ruling.
  • Protests outside the Bell Hotel lead to arrests and police injuries.

MORE than a dozen councils are moving ahead with legal challenges against the use of hotels for asylum seekers despite the Home Office winning an appeal in the Court of Appeal.

Keep ReadingShow less