Most millionaires envisage better life away from the UK
Nearly two thirds of millionaires envisage a better quality of life outside the UK, according to a new poll that suggests a growing pessimism among the better-off.
The poll of over 1,000 UK residents with a net worth of at least £1m has suggested that Brits are less positive about life at home as 60 per cent of respondents believe their lives would improve if they lived somewhere else.
Top destinations for a potential relocation included the USA, Canada, and Australia while the United Arab Emirates and France were also among the likeliest places millionaires would go.
‘Golden Visas’ and other schemes that lure foreign investors to countries were of some interest to nearly 82 per cent of UK millionaires polled, the survey said.
More than half of 18 to 24-year-olds polled in the same survey also said they believed life was better outside of the UK, according to research conducted by Canadian advisory firm Arton Capital.
Millionaires turned off by wealth tax
When asked what they would do if the government introduced a wealth tax on higher earners, nearly one in three millionaires said they would be more likely to leave the UK.
Government ministers have poured cold water on plans to introduce a wealth tax, with one minister calling it a “daft” idea.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves has suggested the current tax balance was “fair” and has criticised MPs from her own party calling for higher taxes.
Prominent Labour backbenchers have continued to demand a wealth tax while reports suggest the Treasury is looking at closing loopholes on inheritance tax and hiking capital gains taxes, which are both forms of wealth taxes.
Arton Capital chief executive Armand Arton said uncertainty around taxes suggests the UK would be at risk of “losing capital, talent and long-term investment to countries that offer greater security”.
The government is also still waiting for full data to emerge on the number of millionaire non doms to leave the country.
Data is not readily available in the UK but several high profile cases suggest high net worth individuals are quickly making their move away.
Among those to have left are Aston Villa owner and Egyptian billionaire Nassef Sawiris as well as the senior Goldman Sachs banker Richard Gnodde.
The richest in the UK already make up large chunks of total tax receipts for the government.
Adam Smith Institute researchers have pointed out that the top five per cent of taxpayers paid nearly half of all liabilities this year, representing a steady increase from the last 25 years.