1st
Nov 2024
A PRS assocaition has strongly opposed Sir Keir Starmer's
claim that landlords are not in any way considered as working people and may face tax increases in the upcoming Budget.
During an interview with Sky News over the weekend, the Prime Minister reiterated that 'working people' would not see higher taxes after the Budget. When asked to define 'working people,' he defined them as those who "go out and earn their living, usually paid in a sort of monthly cheque" and who do not have the means to "write a cheque to get out of difficulties."
When questioned if this definition included individuals who derive all or part of their income from assets like property, he responded, "Well, they wouldn’t come within my definition." He similarly excluded those with shares from being classified as 'working people.'
Labour's manifesto states that the party will not increase taxes on working people, including VAT, national insurance, and income tax.
Starmer’s laughable definition of working people has been handled with contempt by a spokesperson for a trade association who says: “It is simply not true that landlords are not working people.
“Official data shows that 30% of landlords are employed full time, with a further 10% working part-time. 28% are self-employed in some way, while 35%are retired and are likely to rely on their rental income for their pension.
“Rather than stoking misconceptions, the Government needs to focus instead on the key challenge in the rental market, namely a lack of homes to rent to meet ever growing demand.”
And true to form the Labour government has reiterated its mantra when Treasury Minister James Murray told Sky News over the weekend that: “a working person is someone who goes out to work and who gets their income from work… We’re talking about where people get their money from, and so working people get their money from going out to work.
“And it’s that money that we’re talking about in terms of those commitments we made around income tax, around national insurance. That’s what’s important to focus on, where people are getting their money from, getting their money from going out to work.”
Along with the rather juvenile working people classification there is major concerns over the extent of damage to consumer demand with expected tax rises in this week’s Budget.
Susannah Streeter, head of money and markets at a major business consultancy, says: “A survey from GfK indicates that a despondent mood has taken hold ahead of revelation of the government’s tax and spending plans with concerns about the UK economy rising. GfK’s consumer confidence survey fell one point to -21 in October from -20 in September.
“This is the lowest since March, when the former Conservative Chancellor Jeremy Hunt delivered his last Budget.
“However, with fresh interest rate cuts expected optimism around consumers’ finances and confidence about making major purchases ticked up. This will provide hope that once the government’s financial plan becomes clear, uncertainty may ease off and overall consumer confidence may rebound.”
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