Is Kemi Badenoch’s promise to abolish inheritance tax irresponsible? Take our ballot and have your say
Kemi Badenoch made the big money bung promise that would benefit people living in the traditional Conservative Party heartlands in the South East of England
Kemi Badenoch has proposed the big money bung that will benefit some of the wealthiest people in the UK(Image: TOLGA AKMEN/EPA/Shutterstock)
Kemi Badenoch said the Conservatives will abolish inheritance tax, which critics said prioritises some of the wealthiest people in the country.
Badenoch’s big money bung would also allow couples to have £1million exempt from inheritance tax, as well as their family home. The move has been interpreted by politics analysts as the Tories’ attempt at shoring up support in its traditional heartlands in the South East that have come under threat from Reform UK.
“These changes mean every inheritance tax bill will be cut and the number of families paying inheritance tax will fall by more than half,” Badenoch said in her speech on the final day of the Conservative Party conference in Birmingham today. “My ambition is to abolish inheritance tax altogether as soon as we can afford it.”
According to the Office for Budget Responsibility’s March forecast, 4.6 per cent of estates in 2023/24 were subject to inheritance tax. Should Badenoch succeed, it would leave an £8.2billion financial black hole in the economy, according to HM Revenue and Customs.
The move was slammed by Tax Justice UK executive director Faiza Shaheen, who added: “Cutting inheritance tax, as trillions of pounds is going to pass between generations, is a reckless move by any politician that claims to be serious about getting Britain thriving.
“This is a policy that would take money from some of the poorest, to give to the wealthiest. And it would deprive public services of vital cash when the pressures on delivery are increasingly acute.”
TUC general secretary also criticised Badenoch’s inheritance tax bung. He said: “This is a tax paid only by the very richest estates – 95 per cent pay no inheritance tax at all. Cutting it would do nothing for ordinary people.
“This is the same old Tory playbook: cutting taxes for their rich mates and leaving working people to pick up the bill. They are a party for inherited wealth, not workers.”
The Tory leader was also attacked on her right flank, with Reform UK’s Treasury spokesperson Robert Jenrick claiming only 2 per cent of homes would be exempt from the tax altogether.
“As usual, Kemi has chickened out of doing anything big. Presumably, it’s because she couldn’t match Reform’s pledge to resign if she doesn’t deliver on her promises,” he said. Jenrick added the majority of the homes that would be exempt were in London.
