Clause 4
Finance Bill
12:15 pm
Stephen Timms (Financial Secretary, HM Treasury; East Ham, Labour)
No, it is not. The policy is consistent with the new Labour commitment to fairness in the tax system. Everyone throughout the world recognises that consolidation is required. The new Labour approach to achieving that consolidation is to make sure that those who are best in a position to afford an additional contribution should be asked to contribute more. Clause 4 ensures that those with incomes of more than £100,000 a year make a fair contribution to the consolidation that is required. It also removes an unfairness in the tax system that has been discussed over the years whereby people with very high incomes receive twice as much benefit from the personal allowance as somebody who pays tax at the basic rate. Therefore, there is a further fairness benefit.