A YouGov survey of financiers collectively controlling more than £30trn of assets has found that a “sharp tax rise” on companies or investors would cause a third of them to “consider pausing, reducing or stopping all UK investment over the next 12 months”. The overwhelming majority — 78% — said the government was not giving them a strong enough reason to commit capital and 58% said the UK had become less attractive for investment decision-makers over the past 5 years. It's investment that leads to higher growth and higher productivity. It's higher productivity that leads to higher wages. Labour's policies are leading to lower investment and stagnant wages. It's a recipe for pauperisation of the country.

Labour is planning another major assault on family businesses by charging them 45% income tax when passing shares to children. KPMG said it had “significant concerns” that the plans risked “discouraging intergenerational transfers of ownership”. John Endacott, a partner at chartered accountants PKF Francis Clark, warned that “long-standing family companies are still adjusting to the inheritance tax changes. Further taxes on passing businesses to the next generation risk taxing them to extinction.” Let's remember that there are some 5.1m family firms across the UK constituting 93.2% of all private sector businesses. They support 15.8m jobs, 57% of total private sector employment. They generate £2.8 trillion in annual turnover, representing nearly half of the UK private sector total and contribute £985 billion in Gross Value Added GVA (equivalent to roughly 59% of private sector GVA). They pay in £422 billion in total taxes to the Exchequer. The more they have to pay in tax in order to transfer ownership to the next generation, the less money there is for investment and expansion. Along with the imposition of the death tax on family firms, this policy is a dagger to the heart of British business. Why is Labour doing it...........? 1/2