Lib Dem tax proposals good for hard-working families and pensioners (Ipswich Liberal Democrats)

Ipswich Liberal Democrats <info@ipswichlibdems.org.uk>

Lib Dem tax proposals good for hard-working families and pensioners

July 13, 2007 12:01 PM

Lib Dem tax proposal will see end of unfair Council Tax

Councillor Andrew Cann, Deputy Leader of Suffolk County Council's Liberal Democrats has welcomed proposals to reduce the basic rate of income tax to 16p, and scrap the council tax, benefiting millions of people on low and middle incomes.

He said: "These proposals would mean lower tax bills for most households in Suffolk, as well as tackling inequality and environmental damage."

Liberal Democrats propose to cut the basic rate of national income tax by 4p. This will mean that work is rewarded more fairly and people get more of their of their money in their pockets. This will mean that even after Council Tax is abolished and replaced by Local Income Tax, the vast majority of people will be paying a lower rate of income tax overall.

Proposals in the Liberal Democrat tax policy paper, 'Reducing the burden: Policies for tax reform' would:

· Save a typical pensioner couple nearly £1,600 a year through proposals including scrapping council tax1

· Save a typical double-earning couple around £1,000 a year through measures including a 4p cut in the basic rate of income tax2

· Remove tax loop-holes exploited by the super-rich

· Reform stamp duty to reduce the amount of tax paid on properties worth less than £500,000

· Reform Inheritance Tax, with the aim of raising the starting threshold to £500,000

Cllr Cann added: "The current system of taxation is not fair. The unacceptable reality is that in Britain today the poorest pay a higher proportion of their income in tax than the super-rich. Wealth inequality has actually risen since Labour came to power.

Our new proposals will put fairness at the heart of the tax system. Low and middle-income earners in this country shoulder too heavy a tax burden. These tax cuts for the majority will be paid for by the wealthy and those with environmentally damaging lifestyles.

I look forward to supporting these proposals when they are debated and voted on at the Liberal Democrat Conference in Brighton in September."