Chancellor cancels increase in inheritance tax threshold
Alistair Darling has today revealed that he will cancel the planned increase in the inheritance tax threshold to £350,000 per person. This is yet another astounding U-turn by the UK government and while doing so under the guise of saving money and saving tax, it is purely and simply yet another attempt to differentiate the Labour Party from the Conservative Party.
Those who have followed the political scene for some time will be well aware that the inheritance tax situation was an idea "stolen" from the Conservative Party at a time when inheritance tax was high on the agenda for UK voters. However, now that the government is looking to chastise the Conservative Party as a party for the "rich" it seems that an increase in the inheritance tax threshold is no longer "along party lines". However, when you consider the value of homes across the UK, together with investments and potential other assets, more and more people are now being drawn into the inheritance tax scene.
It is difficult to plan ahead with regards to the UK government of the day because we have seen so many flip-flops and U-turns over the last 12 months that we don't know whether to believe what we hear today will actually happen tomorrow.
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