Chancellor must be bold and tax wealth fairly at autumn budget
Any tax rise must be progressive, warns thinktank following reports that the Chancellor will no longer raise income tax
14 November 2025
Responding to reports today that Chancellor Rachel Reeves will not raise income tax after an improved fiscal forecast from the Office for Budget Responsibility, Hannah Peaker, deputy chief executive of the New Economics Foundation, said:
“Regardless of whether there is an improved OBR forecast or not, the government must be bold this budget to meet the challenges facing our country after years of austerity and an ageing population.
“It’s clear some tax rises are inevitable but cutting thresholds would drag people already struggling on low wages into paying tax they can’t afford, so would need to come with additional measures to ease the cost of living.
“Any tax rise should be progressive by starting with the wealthiest, not push up inflation and be earmarked for voter priorities like the NHS and the cost of living. Equalising capital gains so profits from investment are taxed at the same rate as wages would be an important first step.
“But the government must also use this budget to signal how it will boost long-term investment and productivity. Reassessing its fiscal framework and the OBR’s role in examining it has to be a priority, as well as closer working with the Bank of England.”
ENDS
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Contact
James Rush – james.rush@neweconomics.org
Notes
The New Economics Foundation is a charitable think tank. We are independent of political parties and committed to being transparent about how we are funded.
Topics Macroeconomics
