Sunday Times Rich List shows tax reform 'more urgent than ever' says IPPR

Responding to the latest Sunday Times Rich List, Dr George Dibb, head of the centre for economic justice at IPPR, said:

"While a rising number of households on the lowest incomes simply cannot pay their bills, the fact that a few of the UK’s richest people have seen dips in their wealth is outweighed by the growth in combined wealth of the 171 billionaires.

“Sky-high energy bills have fed into record profits for oil firms, who have passed this directly to those lucky enough to be shareholders, funnelling higher bill payments by everyone into the wealth of the richest.

“It’s more urgent than ever to address rising inequality in our economy: income from wealth should be taxed at the same rate as income from work, and we must ensure everyone benefits from a growing economy, not just a lucky few.

“That means aligning rates of income tax, capital gains tax, and tax on dividends. It’s also time for a fair, proportional property tax to replace the regressive system of council tax. And it’s long past time to ditch non-dom status.”

ENDS

Dr George Dibb is available for interview

CONTACT

Liam Evans, senior digital and media officer: 07419 365334 l.evans@ippr.org

NOTES TO EDITORS

1. IPPR has previously argued for:
   
   - Income from wealth to be taxed at the same rate as income from work by increasing the rate of Capital Gains Tax to the same as Income Tax, and removing certain allowances (Just Tax) https://www.ippr.org/research/publications/just-tax
   
   - Ending non-domiciled status tax exemption (A Wealth of Difference)
   https://www.ippr.org/research/publications/a-wealth-of-difference
   
   - Scrapping council tax and stamp duty and replacing them with a fair and uniform Proportional Property Tax (Pulling Down the Ladder)
   https://www.ippr.org/research/publications/pulling-down-the-ladder
   
2. IPPR has also argued for a windfall tax on the excess profits of companies extracting oil and gas
   
3. IPPR is the UK’s pre-eminent progressive think tank. With more than 40 staff in offices in London, Manchester, Newcastle and Edinburgh, IPPR is Britain’s only national think tank with a truly national presence: www.ippr.org