Reeves called cutting inheritance tax a ‘break for wealthy elite'
Ms Reeves made the comments in response to George Osborne's decision in 2015 to abolish the death duty on family homes worth up to £1m, a move she called 'iniquitous and ill-conceived'.
The comments, made in a 2017 article the Chancellor wrote for The Guardian, have fresh relevance as she considers a grab on inheritance in an effort to plug a gap of as much as £50bn in the public finances.
Ms Reeves, a backbench Labour MP at the time, said of the former chancellor's decision: 'It is a tax break for a wealthy elite, at a time when the NHS faces a cash crisis and the government is moving to cut £3.7bn in disability benefits from the most vulnerable in society.
'Helping future generations get the best possible start in life should be a higher priority for any government committed to social mobility than helping the relatives of rich couples enjoy the benefits of £1m of unearned, tax-free income.'
The Chancellor added that the policy proved the Conservatives had 'a warped sense of priorities'.
Ms Reeves faces a similar dilemma to the Tory government at the time after attempting to cut Britain's welfare bill by £5bn before the pledge was abandoned following a backlash from Left-wing Labour MPs.
Meanwhile, NHS doctors have launched fresh strikes with demands for repeated significant pay rises.
The Chancellor is expected to need to find between £20bn and £50bn in her Budget this autumn, following last October's record-breaking £40bn of tax rises.
But Ms Reeves has been boxed in by her own promises not to raise taxes on 'working people', including income tax, VAT and the remaining portion of National Insurance contributions.
IHT is charged on the estate of the deceased, not directly on the working people who may stand to receive the money.
Ms Reeves's argument that passing a house to one's children represents 'unearned' income suggests she would not see the raid as a levy on working people.
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The Guardian
34 minutes ago
- The Guardian
As Ukraine battles to hold lines, Trump may find Putin difficult to persuade
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Even before the weekend, the southerly T0514 supply road to Kramatorsk was at risk of attack, while a Russian military blogger described 'the systematic elimination' of Ukrainian crews. At the same time, Ukraine's forces appear increasingly stretched. Critics such as Bohdan Krotevych, a former chief of staff at the Azov brigade, say too much attention has been focused on infantry counterstrikes in Pokrovsk – 'a soap bubble that will soon burst' – and not enough on augmenting defences to hold existing lines. Ukraine's military, at the urging of Volodymyr Zelenskyy, sent in Azov to try to eliminate the infiltrators. But however small their numbers are, there are more Russians nearby. Ukraine's high command said on Tuesday there were about 110,000 Russian troops near Pokrovsk – and Zelenskyy said another 12,000 were expected to come from Sumy in the north-east to join them in an offensive. All this comes two days before Donald Trump hosts Vladimir Putin at a US military base in Alaska. 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It restored morale in Kyiv and promised a bargaining chip in future peace negotiations. But as Russia fought back, that notional value has disappeared. Though the Kursk offensive prevented Russia from mounting an effective offensive in Donbas in 2024, with the benefit of a longer view the problem for Ukraine may only have been deferred into 2025. Throughout the war, Russia has shown it struggles to capture small urban centres. It took a year to capture Bakhmut, also in Donbas, in May 2023. Pokrovsk was evacuated last August and was expected to fall within weeks. Though Russian forces have reached the edge of the city they have still not captured it, concentrating instead on slowly trying to envelop it. Where Russia has been more successful is in rural areas. It will now hope to cut off more roads coming west into Kramatorsk, the heart of Donetsk oblast that Putin so badly wants. 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On Monday, he said, there were 531 soldiers on Russia's side killed, 428 wounded and nine captured, while on Ukraine's side 18 were killed, 243 wounded and 79 went missing. Despite the disparity, Russia attacks every day, taking similar numbers of casualties as it does so. As long as there continues to be no domestic resistance in Russia, the likelihood is that Putin will feel he can afford to string out negotiations with Trump, despite the threats.
Top Gear
36 minutes ago
- Top Gear
Electric Car Grant: here's every car in the UK that gets the discount
Good news: the Electric Car Grant has returned! As surely everyone is thinking, ain't no party like an ECG party. And like all good ECG parties, this one comes with fun like: rules! Stipulations! Eligibility criteria! The government of the United Kingdom has introduced two bands in order to obtain this ECG: Band 1, which offers a fat £3,750 discount for those cars with the lowest CO2 manufacturing footprint, and Band 2, which offers a less fat £1,500 discount for those cars above a certain threshold. The government of the United Kingdom has not yet confirmed what those thresholds are, and… no electric car in the United Kingdom currently qualifies for the fat £3,750 discount. So for now, here's a big list of every car that gets the less fat £1,500 off. Advertisement - Page continues below The hot version of the new Renault 5 supermini. How much of the grant applies? £1,500 (Band 2). So what does it cost after the grant? From £32,000. What do you think of it? It's a very different experience to hot Clios of old, but still a good one… there's a sense of humour, good looks, usable performance, gadgets to play with and it's well priced. Read the full review here You might like It's the electric version of Citroen's best-selling car ever, the C3. How much of the grant applies? £1,500. So what does it cost after the grant? From £20,595. What do you think of it? There's a lot we really, really like about the Citroen e-C3… and not a lot we don't. Read the full review here Advertisement - Page continues below Essentially a slightly larger, raised version of the standard C3 supermini. How much of the grant applies? £1,500. So what does it cost after the grant? From £21,595. What do you think of it? It fulfils its brief as a slightly roomier C3 without becoming too posh or too expensive. Read our full review here Good question. It's still a hatchback, but slightly taller. Not tall enough to be an SUV, and too sleek of boot to be a crossover. How much of the grant applies? £1,500. So what does it cost after the grant? From £26,150. What do you think of it? It's an interestingly styled hatch with a very reasonable asking price. Read our full review here Largely identical to the e-C4, only with an elongated rear end. How much of the grant applies? £1,500. So what does it cost after the grant? From £27,215. What do you think of it? Could do with a slightly firmer setup for better body control: the extra weight (over 200kg vs the hybrid) means it suffers from a bounce and a wallowyness that isn't there in the hybrids. Read the full review here A big, friendly Citroen, now in its second generation and freshly electrified. How much of the grant applies? £1,500. What will it cost? From £32,565. What do you think of it? We've not driven it yet, but it sits on the same bones as the Peugeot e-3008 and e-5008, and both of those are decent... Read the full story here Advertisement - Page continues below A van-based car that offers immense practicality and loads of space. How much of the grant applies? £1,500. So what does it cost after the grant? From £29,740. What do you think of it? Enormously practical and built for family life, the Berlingo does all you could realistically ask of it. Read our full review here Only Nissan's second attempt at an electric car since it introduced the Leaf in 2010 and stole a march on everyone. How much of the grant applies? £1,500. So what does it cost after the grant? From £33,500. What do you think of it? Looks fun, but drives a bit more like you'd expect a Nissan to. If you're after an electric family SUV with a decent amount of range, then you could do a lot worse. Read our full review here Advertisement - Page continues below Everyone's favourite learner car, here reimagined as an electrified supermini, ready to be silently dinged into oblivion by an entirely new generation of drivers. How much of the grant applies? £1,500. So what does it cost after the grant? From £21,495. What do you think of it? We've yet to drive the new one, but it's the based on the 'AmpR Small' platform that underpins the award-winning Renault 5. Find out more here Closely related to the wonderful Renault 5 EV, but with an 8cm longer wheelbase. That's why it's a little more expensive than the R5, even if their names might make you think the prices are the other way around. How much of the grant applies? £1,500. So what does it cost after the grant? From £25,495. What do you think of it? There's goodness in the R4 that goes beyond design: the interior is sublime, the tech is well executed, it's value for money and (most importantly of all) unfailingly uplifting to drive. 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How much of the grant applies? £1,500. So what does it cost after the grant? From £30,690. What do you think of it? The Combo is well judged for family life and makes no misguided attempts at sportiness. Read our full review here Vauxhall Frontera Electric It's the new Vauxhall Frontera, making its return after a 20-year absence. How much of the grant applies? £1,500. So what does it cost after the grant? From £23,995. What do you think of it? It feels well judged. Its driving manners exceeded our expectations, it blends the company's now familiar image with the kind of rugged looks people favour these days, and above all there's no arguing with the cost. Read the full review here Vauxhall Grandland Electric It's the second-generation Vauxhall Grandland, available for the first time with electric power, in case you hadn't already guessed by the name. How much of the grant applies? £1,500. So what does it cost after the grant? From £34,555. What do you think of it? This is a car you'll buy with your sensible shoes on, and not those fluorescent trainers you got on a whim and haven't worn since. Read our full review here Vauxhall's smallest crossover. How much of the grant applies? £1,500. So what does it cost after the grant? From £30,180. What do you think of it? What the Mokka does is make a Corsa-sized crossover more interesting than it has any right to be. Read the full review here
The Guardian
37 minutes ago
- The Guardian
Drop in new properties for rent is steepest since Covid, says Rics
The flow of new rental properties coming on to the market has fallen at the fastest rate since the first Covid lockdown five years ago, according to research by Britain's property surveyors. Although the demand for properties is steady, there are fewer new rentals from landlords coming available, the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (Rics) found. The July 2025 Rics Residential Market Survey showed a 'firmly negative trend' in landlords making their properties available for rent, the weakest reading since April 2020. With the lack of fresh supply in the pipeline, rental prices are expected to rise over the next three months, according to the report, which takes a monthly 'sentiment survey' of chartered surveyors. The expected rise comes after another report this week found the average private rents in Great Britain had fallen marginally for the first time in five years. The estate agent Hamptons said lower mortgage rates had helped to take some heat out of the market and that the average rent on a newly let property fell by 0.2% in July compared with a year earlier. The Rics report also said new inquiries from homebuyers had fallen in July, suggesting a softening in demand compared with earlier in the summer. In June, most of those surveyed said there had been a rise in fresh inquiries. Sign up to Business Today Get set for the working day – we'll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morning after newsletter promotion Simon Rubinsohn, chief economist at Rics, said the flatter tone of the latest report showed the market was facing challenges. Last week, the Bank of England voted for a fifth cut in interest rates in a year, reducing the cost of borrowing to 4% amid concerns about the strength of the UK economy. 'Although interest rates were lowered at the latest Bank of England meeting, the split vote has raised doubts about both the timing and extent of further reductions,' Rubinsohn said. 'Meanwhile, uncertainty about the potential contents of the chancellor's autumn budget is also raising some concerns. Against this backdrop, respondents continue to report that the market remains particularly price sensitive at the present time.' The estate agent Knight Frank said the renters' rights bill, which is due to come into force next year and is aimed at reforming the sector, has meant landlords were now increasingly looking to sell. '[Shrinking supply] is one unintended consequence of the forthcoming renters' rights bill, which could make it more onerous to regain possession of a property and raises the risk of void periods,' said Tom Bill, head of residential research. Sarah Coles, head of personal finance at the investment platform Hargreaves Lansdown, said the Rics survey showed 'the era of runaway rents isn't over yet' as more people were now chasing fewer homes. One of its recent surveys found that the average renting household had just £62 left at the end of the month.
