Families in the ‘squeezed middle’ are set to pay the highest level of income tax in over a decade due to Jeremy Hunt’s stealth taxes, new research has revealed.
The Commons Library analysis, commissioned by the Liberal Democrats, shows that an average full-time earner currently on a salary of £39,300 will pay a whopping £6,095 a year in income tax by 2028, an increase of £750.
This is the highest level of income tax for middle income earners since 2012, when a full time median earner would have paid £6,320 in income tax in today’s prices.
The figures show that by 2027/28, the personal allowance will reach a 15-year low of just £11,730 in real terms. This means the amount of money people can earn before they start paying income tax will be at its lowest level since 2012.
The Liberal Democrats in government succeeded in significantly raising the personal allowance, giving millions of people a tax cut and taking the lowest earners out of paying income tax altogether. However, this progress is now set to be undone by years of stealth taxes under Rishi Sunak and Jeremy Hunt, who are freezing the personal allowance until 2027/28.
Liberal Democrat Treasury Spokesperson Sarah Olney MP said:
“Rishi Sunak and Jeremy Hunt are hammering families with years of stealth taxes, just as the cost of living bites.
“It just shows this Conservative government has completely lost its way. Those in the hard working middle should not be asked to pick up the tab for endless Conservative chaos and incompetence.
“The Liberal Democrats are proud that we raised the personal allowance, giving millions of families a tax cut and taking the lowest earners out of paying income tax altogether. Now this legacy has been trashed by a Conservative chancellor who is hiking people’s taxes to their highest level in over 15 years.”
