Andy Burnham has hinted that a wealth tax could be on the way, refusing to rule out the move in a broadcast interview days before he enters No 10.
The prospect has long been pushed for by Labour figures on the party’s left, and Burnham’s claim that he is “not going to rule things out right now” have added fresh fuel to the debate.
He has already committed to keeping Labour’s 2024 manifesto pledge not to raise income tax, VAT or national insurance, narrowing his options for raising revenue elsewhere.
With his first Budget expected in the autumn, pressure is building on the soon-to-be prime minister to say where else the money to fund public spending, and stick to his fiscal rules, might come from.
What are wealth taxes?
A wealth tax is a levy on the total value of what someone owns – property, savings, investments and other assets – rather than on income or spending.
Many countries already have one. For example, Spain has a national wealth tax starting at 0.2 per cent on assets over €700,000 (around £600,000), climbing to 3.5 per cent above €10.7m (around £9.2m), though some regions offer rebates that reduce the bill.
But the UK doesn’t have one. Instead, wealth here is taxed indirectly through other taxes like inheritance tax, capital gains tax and stamp duty.
But calls for a British wealth tax are growing. Wes Streeting, the former health secretary, has argued the current tax system “penalises work” by taxing salaries more heavily than wealth.
More than two dozen Labour MPs backed a motion last November for a new wealth tax, tabled by Leeds East MP Richard Burgon, who called it “a fairer and more popular alternative to any stealth taxes on ordinary people.”
Support extends beyond Westminster too. Unite general secretary Sharon Graham has called for “a wealth tax to fund our public services”, while Oxfam wants to “tax the super-rich” to fund better healthcare, education and fair wages.
And it’s popular with the public. A YouGov poll found a wealth tax was the most popular tax reform tested, backed by three-quarters of Britons, with majorities among Labour, Conservative, Liberal Democrat and Green voters alike.
Does Burnham want a wealth tax?
In an interview with broadcaster Gary Lineker for the Goalhanger YouTube channel, Burnham said he was “not going to rule things out right now” when asked about the prospect of a wealth tax.
“I don’t want to come in and sort of, if you like, create new divisions and pitch people one against another,” he said.
Asked directly about the prospect of a wealth tax, he added that “at some point” the UK may have to ask the public to give “a little more”.
But he added: “Those decisions are not for now. They’re for another day.”
Wealth taxes could be a major revenue-raising tool for Burnham, who has already committed to sticking with Labour’s 2024 manifesto pledge not to raise income tax, VAT or national insurance.
But one of his first confirmed policies shows he’s already comfortable with the broader principle – taxing bigger players to fund a break for smaller ones.
During his Makerfield by-election campaign, Burnham pledged a 20 per cent cut to business rates for pubs, clubs and music venues, alongside a higher threshold before smaller hospitality and retail firms start paying business rates at all.
He wants to fund both changes through higher levies on warehouses run by online retailers such as Amazon, and on the owners of empty high-street properties.
Burnham faces pressure to bring in a wealth tax on individuals with assets over £10m (Photo: AP/Alastair Grant)How a wealth tax could work in the UK
Some proposals would introduce a genuinely new tax on wealth. Others simply tweak existing taxes to hit wealth harder.
A 2 per cent levy on assets over £10m: The most-discussed new wealth tax, backed by Oxfam and campaign group Tax Justice UK. It would affect around 20,000 to 32,000 people and, according to modelling based on the Wealth Tax Commission’s work, could raise up to £24bn a year.
A tiered wealth tax: The Green Party backs a different new model – 1 per cent on assets above £10m, rising to 2 per cent above £1bn, which it says could raise £15bn.
Capital gains tax equalisation: Capital gains tax is paid on the profit made when someone sells an asset that has increased in value, such as shares or a second home, and is currently charged at lower rates than income tax. Former health secretary Wes Streeting has proposed aligning it with the 20, 40 and 45 per cent income tax bands instead. He estimated this could raise around £12bn a year, with lower rates possibly kept for “genuine” entrepreneurs.
National insurance on investment income: Tax Justice UK has floated applying national insurance to income from investments, which it claims could raise around £10.2bn. National insurance currently only applies to earnings from employment or self-employment, meaning income from things like dividends, rent or savings interest isn’t subject to it at all.
What opponents say
Not everyone agrees a wealth tax is workable.
Wealthy people leaving: Tax Policy Associates, a tax policy think tank, pointed to the example of Norway in a July 2025 report, where more than 30 billionaires and multimillionaires left the country in a single year after the wealth tax rate there was increased, according to research by the newspaper Dagens Næringsliv.
Valuation challenges: The think tank also argued that while bank accounts and shares in listed companies are simple to value, private companies pose a much bigger problem. It points to UK tax disputes over private company valuations that have lasted more than ten years, and warns wealthy people could simply move their money into these harder-to-value assets to pay less tax.
Impact on saving and investment: The Institute for Fiscal Studies, an economic research institute, said in a July 2025 comment piece that taxing the same wealth every year would “penalise saving and investment.” Its economists argued that reforming existing taxes on wealth, rather than introducing a new one, would work better and be easier to implement.
What happens next
No firm plans for a wealth tax have been confirmed.
Burnham is due to enter No 10 on Monday, with a new cabinet expected to be announced the same day, including his choice of chancellor.
Decisions on tax are expected to crystallise around his first Budget, expected in the autumn.
But business groups are pushing him not to wait that long.
Rain Newton-Smith, chief executive of the CBI, has urged Burnham to avoid a “summer of speculation” on tax and spending, warning that uncertainty over potential rises is “really difficult for business.”
Speaking to The Guardian, she called instead for him to set out “a credible fiscal plan” early in his premiership.
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