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Fix pensions, death tax and stamp duty, Mr Sunak

The shock resignation of Sajid Javid as chancellor last Thursday put an end to Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s honeymoon since winning the December election.
With just weeks before the Budget, which has now been confirmed for 11 March , Mr Javid’s swift exit has caused uncertainty for consumers and savers. The new Chancellor, Rishi Sunak, has promised his Budget will focus on “levelling up and unleashing the country’s potential”.
Mr Javid had been considering a controversial “mansion tax”, which since his exit has almost certainly been shelved. Homeowners will be breathing a sigh of relief. But don’t jump for joy just yet, as the Government needs to find some way of raising cash to meet its spending commitments.
Rumoured plans to cut pension tax relief, which were leaked prior to Mr Javid’s departure, are still on the cards. The proposal to introduce a flat rate of 20pc would hit anyone earning more than 50,000 a year. Higher rate and additional rate taxpayers currently get 40pc or 45pc tax relief on their pension contributions.
What’s more, where employees are lucky enough to be in a final salary pension scheme, cutting tax relief could push businesses still offering these generous pensions to close them.
We are in the dark on Mr Sunak’s views – but the estimated 10bn that cutting tax relief would raise could be far too attractive for him to ignore.
In Telegraph Money’s manifesto, we call on the new chancellor to leave pensions tax relief alone and simplify Britain’s most hated tax – the inheritance levy. And our property editor Isabelle Fraser says Mr Sunak should take the opportunity to slash stamp duty in an effort to carry on the Boris Bounce momentum.
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