A wealth tax would be “daft” and those demanding one should “get serious”, Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds has told GB News.
Rachel Reeves is under pressure from some on Labour’s left to introduce such a tax to close a looming fiscal “black hole” at the Budget in the Autumn.
And Reynolds has ridiculed the idea of a wealth tax in an interview with Chopper’s Political Podcast, pointing that Labour had already increased levies on private jets and private school fees.
He said: “This Labour Government has increased taxes on wealth as opposed to income – the taxes on private jets, private schools, changes through inheritance tax, capital gains tax.
GB NEWS
|
A new wealth tax would be ‘daft’ and those demanding one should ‘get serious’, Reynolds said
“But the idea there’s a magic wealth tax, some sort of levy… [One] like that doesn’t exist anywhere in the world.
Switzerland has a levy, but they don’t have capital gains or inheritance tax.
There’s no kind of magic [tax]. We’re not going to do anything daft like that.
“And I say to people: ‘Be serious about this.’ The idea you can just levy everyone… What if your wealth was not in your bank account, [what if it was] in fine wine or art?
WEALTH TAX FEARS – READ MORE:
“How would we tax that? This is why this doesn’t exist.
“There’s a lot of populism out about this, and I’m frustrated to see it. I see colleagues sometimes say this in Parliament and I say: ‘Come on, get serious, get serious.'”
Ex-Labour leader Lord Kinnock has urged his party to impose a two per cent tax on assets worth more than £10million – a call backed by its more vocal backbenchers.
Left-wing Labour MP Richard Burgon delivered an 80,000-strong petition for just that to Downing Street this week.
X/RICHARDBURGON
|
Richard Burgon delivered an 80,000-strong petition for a wealth tax to Downing Street this week
“A two per cent wealth tax on assets over £10million would raise £24billion per year,” Burgon claimed.
“And the polls show that 75 per cent of the public supports a wealth tax!”
The Chancellor is expected to throw out the demands, because those who would be impacted would simply leave the country.
Listen to Chopper’s Political Podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or watch it on GB News’ YouTube channel.