A Treasury minister rebutted claims that capital gains tax could hit 39 per cent but did not rule out a rise in the Budget.
James Murray stressed that a possible jump to 39 per cent was something that he “completely didn’t recognise”.
The current rate of capital gains tax for higher-earning taxpayers in the UK ranges from 20 per cent to 28 per cent depending on the type of asset.
But there have been reports that the Treasury has been modelling increasing CGT to 33 per cent or 39 per cent.
Asked about this on Times Radio on Tuesday, Mr Murray said: “That figure that you mention is not any modelling that I recognise.
“But beyond that I’m not going to speculate what is going to be in the Budget.”
Pressed whether the Government was not being fully open over whether there would be no CGT rise, or just that it would not go as high as 39 per cent, he added: “When you see speculation in newspapers that you just completely don’t recognise, that’s fair to say that.
“But beyond that we are not going to engage in detailed speculation.”
Sir Keir Starmer, who said on Monday that the 39 per cent figure was “pretty wide of the mark,” also faced a row over whether a rise in National Insurance for employers would be a breach of Labour’s manifesto.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves gave the clearest signal yet on Monday that NI on employers would go up in the October 30 Budget, with speculation that inheritance tax could also rise.
Speaking at an investment summit in the City in London, she said: “We were really clear in our manifesto that we weren’t going to increase the key taxes paid by working people: income tax, national insurance and VAT and, on the business side of commitment, that we would cap corporation tax at its current rate of 25% which was the lowest in the in the G7 and we will stick to the commitments we made in our manifesto.
“But you know that there’s a £22 billion black hole over and above anything that we knew about going into the election that we need to fill, and that’s not just for one year, but that persists throughout the forecast period.”
Former Chancellor Jeremy Hunt denies that he left the new Labour government a £22 billion black hole in the public finances.
Paul Johnson, director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies, says raising NI for employers would break Labour’s manifesto.
Mr Murray, though, argued: “What the manifesto says is we will not increase taxes on working people and by that we mean National Insurance, income tax and VAT.”
Labour’s manifesto states: “We will ensure taxes on working people are kept as low as possible. Labour will not increase taxes on working people, which is why we will not increase National Insurance, the basic, higher, or additional rates of Income Tax, or VAT.”
Mr Murray stressed that £60 billion for projects had been unveiled at the investment summit on Monday which was a “great sign of confidence” in Britain and the “stability” the new Government is offering.
“We need to balance, fix the finances, to make sure we put the public finances back on a stable footing to get economic stability back into the heart of the nation’s finances, and at the same time to promote growth,” he added.
“That is the challenge that we face for the Budget.”
Laura Trott, shadow Treasury minister, said: “The Chancellor has chosen Labour’s first investment summit to sow further uncertainty and chaos for businesses who are now braced for Labour’s Jobs Tax.
“Regardless of what they say, it’s obvious to all that hiking employer National Insurance is a clear breach of Labour’s manifesto. Rachel Reeves herself previously called it anti-business and we agree, it is a tax on work that will deter investment, employment and growth, and the OBR (Office for Budget Responsibility) says it will lower wages.”
