A cautious Labour Party has been loath to highlight any taxes it may raise to fund public services with just one or two exceptions, including on wealthy “non-doms” — those not domiciled in the UK for tax purposes.
Last month, Chancellor Jeremy Hunt stole the Opposition’s thunder by announcing in the Budget plans to abolish non-dom status. This not only deprived Labour of a rare policy difference, but also theoretical cash it wants to spend in government.
This morning, Rachel Reeves, Hunt’s shadow, returned to the well, suggesting that a Labour government would raise £2.6 billion in the next parliament by axing “loopholes” in the Conservatives’ plans. This would fund free breakfast clubs for primary school age children and further funding for the NHS.
Whichever party wins the next election will have to find revenue to fund creaking public services and service eye-watering debt repayments. However, tax rises are rarely a free lunch. The 37,000 non-doms in the UK collectively paid roughly £6 billion in income tax, national insurance and capital gains tax in 2020-21, according to the Institute for Fiscal Studies. Those deterred by further changes may choose to leave the UK, making this a highly uncertain revenue stream on which to fund important pledges.
Get out and vote
With one week to go to register for the May 2 mayoral and London Assembly Elections, Sadiq Khan has made a direct appeal for support to European Londoners with an open letter in today’s Evening Standard.
In this, Khan enjoys a distinct advantage: while the Mayor campaigned vigorously for Remain, his Conservative opponent, Susan Hall, supported Leave. The Mayor points out that under current proposals, these elections will be the final occasion in which all EU citizens will automatically be eligible to take part.
That may of course change. But the Standard’s plea to all Londoners is the same — register, secure your photo identification and on May 2, get out and vote.
Preserving knowledge
If you don’t possess “The Knowledge”, you cannot enter the cabbies’ shelter. But Londoners can still admire them from afar, as the historic green huts have all now been granted Grade II status, after the final shelter in St John’s Wood was listed. Constructed by the Cabmen’s Shelter Fund between 1875 and 1914, the buildings provided a space for cabmen to rest and eat in an era when they were banned from leaving their carriages unattended.
Less than a quarter of the original 61 survive today. But they continue to serve taxi drivers, as well as a reminder of the capital’s horse-drawn era.
