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9am Lowdown: Hammond, Brexit, marriage allowance

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16th Jan 2017
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Good morning and welcome to Monday’s Lowdown. In the news today, Philip Hammond hints at a post-Brexit Britain being somewhat of a tax haven. Elsewhere, a new survey has found more people would prefer an increase to marriage allowance rather than further increases to the personal allowance.

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“We will have to change our model to regain competitiveness”

Chancellor Philip Hammond has suggested Britain may adopt a competitive corporate tax policy if the UK was shut off from the European markets, The Guardian reported over the weekend.  

Hammond said to the German newspaper Welt am Sonntag “most of us who had voted remain would like the UK to remain a recognisably European-style economy with European-style taxation systems, European-style regulation systems etc. I personally hope we will be able to remain in the mainstream of European economic and social thinking.”

“But if we are forced to be something different, then we will have to become something different”.

When asked to clarify his remarks, Hammond said “We could be forced to change our economic model, and we will have to change our model to regain competitiveness”

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Netherlands opposes UK-EU deal without tax avoidance regulations

Meanwhile, the leader of the Netherlands’ Labour party will oppose an EU trade deal with the UK unless Britain agrees on anti-tax avoidance measures.

The Guardian reports that Lodewijk Asscher, the deputy prime minister of the Netherlands, has written to socialist leaders across the EU about his party’s stance. In the letter, he said: “If you and I pay taxes, so should the large enterprises. Let’s fight the race to the bottom for profits taxation together which threatens to come into existence if it is up to the Conservative UK government.

“This will affect all Europeans, as it deteriorates our support for our social security system and leaves ordinary people to bear the costs. This is why I propose to come to a new trade agreement with Great Britain, but only if we can agree firmly upon tackling tax avoidance and stopping the fiscal race to the bottom.”  

Survey calls for marriage tax increase

Marriage tax allowance should increase instead of further increases in personal allowance, a new survey from ComRes found.  

According to the Telegraph, 58% of those surveyed supported an increase in the marriage allowance, compared to only 21% who supported increased in the personal allowance from £11,000. In fact, 65% were opposed to personal allowance increases.

The marriage allowance has received a lack of uptake since its introduction. As the Telegraph reports, as many as 3.1m of 4.2m eligible couples in Britain are failing to apply for the allowance.

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Replies (1)

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By SteveHa
16th Jan 2017 16:30

I wonder if, by any chance, more than 58% of those surveyed were married?

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