Carrying debt into retirement isn’t always bad news Opinion As more pensioners turn to housing wealth to fund old age, James Daley argues that perceptions around carrying debt into retirement need to change.
Inheritance tax enquiries surge to six-year high after HMRC clampdown Economics Tax authority probes into households’ inheritance tax returns have surged to a six-year high, after a government-led crackdown on avoidance and non-compliance. HMRC opened a total of 4,940 formal inheritance tax enquiries over the last financial year, according to new data obtained by chartered accountants Price Bailey, an 18 per cent increase on the previous [...]
Labour U-turns on inheritance tax raid after year of farmer protests Politics The Labour government will raise the inheritance tax relief threshold for farms in another dramatic U-turn following a year of backlash from rural communities. On Tuesday, the Treasury and Department for Food and Rural Affairs said it would increase the Agricultural and Business Property Reliefs threshold to £2.5m from £1m when it is introduced in [...]
Autumn Budget Live: Wealthy, landlords and pensions hit in £26bn tax raid November 26, 2025 Welcome back to the Morning Wire liveblog. In a shocking turn of events the UK fiscal watchdog has accidentally released the economic forecasts – intended to be published after the Budget – before the Chancellor even took to the despatch box. Rachel Reeves has raised taxes by £26bn in her second Budget, which follows on [...]
Rich parents fear children will squander inheritance August 6, 2025 An increasing number of high-net-worth parents are worried that leaving too much money to their children will be a “curse on their lives” and are turning to charity donations to avoid handing large sums down the generations. According to a fresh poll, three quarters of parents with a net worth of £3m or more believe [...]
Generational wealth gap fuels spike in family feuds over wills August 5, 2025 Feuds over family inheritance are on the rise as the number of applications lodged to challenge probates has reached an all-time high in the final quarter of 2024
Inheritance tax nets record £6.7bn before Budget raid July 31, 2025 The Exchequer raked in a record £6.7bn in inheritance tax between 2022 and 2023, as a longstanding freeze on the tax-free threshold and ballooning asset prices meant more estates were sucked in to paying the unpopular levy. The overall earnings from inheritance tax rose by over £700m in the tax year 2022/3, official data showed, [...]
One in eight high earners with no inheritance ‘trapped by financial outgoings’ July 27, 2025 One in eight (12 per cent) people with a salary over £100,000, but with no parental wealth to fall back on, feel “trapped” by their current financial commitments, a survey has found. More than two-fifths (44 per cent) do not feel that they are able to comfortably meet their financial commitments each month, according to [...]
Virtual vultures? How scammers are swooping on digital will July 16, 2025 Fraudsters are taking advantage of weaknesses in the online probate system and stealing millions of pounds from families and the estates of the deceased, says Lynsey Harrison A major story broke over the weekend concerning two sisters Lisa and Nicole. In late 2023, they were informed through a ‘heir finder’ company they had inherited a [...]
Reeves’ spending spree could open £20bn gap – which taxes will rise? June 12, 2025 Rachel Reeves splashed the taxpayer cash in her inaugural Spending Review, raising expectations the Chancellor may be coming back for more tax revenue in the Autumn if her growth ambitions are not met. Reeves is set to hand out an extra £190bn in government spending over the course of the parliament, in what she described [...]