Jeremy Hunt eyes tax cut for white van men in Chancellor’s Autumn Statement | Politics | News

The army of white van men in the United Kingdom could cut headline taxes in Jeremy Hunt’s Autumn Statement.

The Chancellor is believed to be considering cutting Class 4 National Insurance Contributions (NICs) for the self-employed.

As it currently stands plumbers, electricians and other self-employed people are hit with a nine per cent charge on profits between £12,570 and £50,270.

Anything above this incurs a 2 per cent levy.

A government insider said there was a “70 per cent chance” this tax would be imposed on Wednesday, The Sun reports.

The ‘carriage tax’ is another white tax on vans which could be frozen.

The van benefit fee was raised last year by £72 to almost £800.

Mr Hunt spoke about reducing the tax burden on families during a visit to Milton Keynes yesterday.

He said: “It is very important that we find a way to reduce the tax burden on working families. But there are no shortcuts.”

As well as helping businesses, Mr Hunt is considering cutting Inheritance Tax in next week’s announcement.

It is the last major fiscal event before the election year.

He said: “I think business tax cuts should always be a priority if you have room for cuts.

“Because ultimately what we need to do is improve the long-term ability of the British economy to generate the wealth we need to pay for the NHS.

“So that will always be a priority.”

Hunt and Prime Minister Rishi Sunak have raised the nation’s tax burden to a 70-year high, adding to cost-of-living pressures.

But improved public finances have raised hopes that there is plenty of room for a wide range of pre-Christmas gifts.

Inflation fell to 4.6 per cent last month and may have given Downing Street more confidence to cut taxes.

And Government borrowing – the difference between spending and tax revenue – was £20 billion lower last year than the OBR had predicted.

The Resolution Foundation claims the Chancellor has an extra £6.5 billion to spend as previously high inflation, combined with record wage growth, is driving up tax revenue.

Overall it means the government has more than £26 billion of headspace to work within.

This compares to £6.5 billion at the time of the March budget.