Inequality: Income and Wealth

Lord Barnett Excerpts

Monday 11th March 2013 Lords Chamber

[Lord Deighton]

My Lords, I absolutely agree—I am sure everybody does—with the sentiment that it is much easier to argue over the slices of an increasing cake than to divide one up that is static or shrinking.

[Lord Barnett]

My Lords, on the noble Lord’s major point about increasing personal allowances as a factor, does the greater relief go to somebody on £50,000 a year or somebody on £15,000?

[Lord Deighton]

What I can tell the noble Lord about the increase in personal allowances is that it is a highly progressive change in the tax system. It applies to about 24.5 million or 25 million taxpayers, who will enjoy a benefit of about £400 from it in 2013-14, and it takes just over 2 million people out of the tax system.