The proportion of estates paying inheritance tax has halved over the past few years thanks to the fall in house prices and the government’s introduction of a new nil-band threshold for married couples.
The proportion of estates paying inheritance tax has halved over the past few years thanks to the fall in house prices and the government’s introduction of a new nil-band threshold for married couples.
Just 3% of estates are likely to be faced with inheritance tax in the current tax year, HMRC has said – down from a peak off around 6% in the final years of the house price boom, which came to an end in late 2007.
The news comes amid a row over the Conservative pledge – first made in September 2007 – to increase the individual inheritance tax threshold to £1 million. The promise gave the opposition an immediate poll boost and helped dissuade Gordon Brown from a snap election.
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However, in a television interview on Sunday, shadow business secretary Ken Clarke appeared to water down his party’s promise, suggesting tax cuts of this sort might not be immediately appropriate in the current economic environment.
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