Sunak handed businesses and the wealthy £36bn in tax cuts

Tax Justice UK analysis suggests that businesses and wealthy people received almost £40bn in tax cuts while Rishi Sunak was Chancellor. A review of tax “winners and losers” across every Budget that took place while Boris Johnson was Prime Minister and Mr Sunak was Chancellor found that the Treasury had favoured tax breaks for business over help for individuals and families. Tax Justice UK calculated that the Government handed at least £35.8bn to businesses in tax cuts, compared to plans in place when Theresa May’s government came to an end. The report also shows that Ms Sunak handed a £2.2bn net reduction in taxes on wealth, primarily through a stamp duty holiday which cost £5bn while primarily helping well-off homeowners. The move also helped to inflate the UK’s property bubble, pushing prices further out of reach for first-time buyers. Paul Hebden, Tax Justice UK’s acting executive director, said: “Tax is about political choices, and our analysis shows that Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak gave tens of billions in handouts to business.”

 

The Independent

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