Vince Cable outlines the Lib Dems' tax plan
- 00:01:49
- ITN
Vince Cable outlines the Lib Dems' tax plan
Liberal Democrat economic affairs spokesman Vince Cable has announced plans to hit the country's wealthiest homeowners. Mr Cable promised to prioritise income tax cuts for low and middle-earners. He said he would lift the income tax threshold to £10,000 so 4 million low-paid workers and pensioners would no longer have to pay tax. That would be funded by a £17 billion package of tax hikes elsewhere, including a new 0.5 per cent levy on the estimated 250,000 houses worth more than £1 million. Other moves would include a crackdown on top earners, including City traders, who pay capital gains tax on their earnings at 18 per cent rather than the 40 per cent top rate of income tax. Pensions tax relief for higher earners would also be scrapped and the capital gains tax exemption cut from £10,000 to £2,000. But Mr Cable warned that he would have to take decisions on public spending that would not be easy or popular and refused to rule out the prospect of overall tax rises.
ITN | September 21, 2009
