Overview

• The Resolution Foundation proposed a 2p rise in income tax matched by a 2p cut in employee national insurance, estimating roughly £6bn a year while shifting more of the burden to pensioners, landlords and the self‑employed.
• The think tank, which has close links to current ministers, said the switch should sit within a wider £20–30bn package that could include lowering the VAT threshold to £30,000, higher sugar and salt levies, carbon charges on long‑haul travel, higher dividend taxes and tackling unpaid small‑business corporation tax.
• Separately, House of Commons Library research for the Liberal Democrats found that extending the freeze on income‑tax thresholds beyond April 2028 would drag millions into higher bands and raise about £3.4bn in 2028–29, £7bn in 2029–30 and more than £10bn by 2030, costing the average worker around £285 a year by decade’s end.
• Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey urged Rachel Reeves to rule out extending these so‑called stealth taxes, while business groups cautioned that further tax rises could add to costs for retailers and consumers.
• A Treasury spokesperson said tax decisions are made at fiscal events and declined to comment on speculation, with final measures to be set out in the autumn Budget on 26 November.