Starmer’s leadership challenger Streeting floats UK ‘wealth tax that works’

The former health minister has proposed equalising capital gains levy with income tax, aiming for a ‘fairer’ UK wealth system

Former British ⁠health minister Wes Streeting, a ⁠potential candidate for the leadership of the Labour Party, said he backed the introduction of tax changes which would equalise capital gains tax with income tax to make the system “fairer”.

Streeting ‌said on Saturday that he wanted to challenge embattled Prime Minister Keir Starmer if there is a contest, days after he stepped down and urged Starmer to set a timetable for his departure.

The former health minister, who has already said he believes Britain should seek to ⁠rejoin the European Union, said on Thursday that another of his proposals ‌would be changes to capital gains tax.

Capital gains tax is paid on profits of more than £3,000 (US$3,900) made ‌when an asset is sold, and rates depend on how ⁠much the ⁠seller usually pays in income tax, and how large the gain is.

Streeting would raise ‌the rates of the tax from 18 per cent-24 per cent currently to as much as 40 per cent and 45 per cent depending ‌on a person’s ‌income tax bracket. According to one study, the change would ‌raise £12 billion a year.

“We need a wealth tax that works. A ⁠pound made from simply owning assets should not be taxed less than ⁠a pound made from a hard day’s work,” Streeting said in a press release.