John Healey is unlikely to make any increase to capital gains tax (CGT) in the Budget, The i Paper understands.
The Chancellor is under pressure to raise money through so-called wealth taxes, and calls have been made for the rates of CGT – paid on the profits of the sale of an asset, such as a second home – to be set at the same rates as income tax.
While reports on Wednesday suggested the Chancellor would not do this, he appeared to leave the door open to a lower rise.
Why water firms could be due customers £240m by 2030
Poor supplier performance means households are set to see £240m taken off their water bills by 2030, regulator Ofwat has announced.
Water firms not hitting targets
The water watchdog said it was looking at imposing penalties on a number of firms across the sector for not meeting environmental and customer service targets in the 2025-26 financial year.
- A total of £240m could be returned through customers’ bills by 2029-30, with £107m to be returned in 2027-28.
Why the reduction is unlikely to impact your wallet
However, cuts to bills will likely be offset for many customers by recent plans announced by Ofwat to permit water firms to raise annual tariffs by an extra £3.4bn.
This is in addition to the 36 per cent rise agreed over the five years to 2030.
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Who could see the biggest reductions?
Customers of Yorkshire Water could see £27 taken off their bills for under-performance on average, with a £7 reduction for those at Thames Water, according to Ofwat.
Meanwhile, some firms will see outperformance payments, such as Severn Trent and Northumbrian Water.
Ofwat stressed that changes to bills are “affected by a range of factors and the effect will vary by company and customer type”. It will make its on the payments by 15 December, taking effect on next year.
Burnham’s water plans
- Last month, plans were revealed for laws to pave the way for public ownership of water companies.
- It has sparked conversation about a possible temporary nationalisation of debt-ridden Thames Water.
- Andy Burnham has previously warned customers “cannot be treated as a blank cheque” after Ofwat announced plans in August to allow additional bill increases.
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Finally, sewage-dumping water bosses to lose their bonuses
The move marks a new win for The i Paper’s Save Britain’s Rivers campaign, which has been calling for tougher measures to restrict bonuses at underperforming water firms.
Russell Brand ‘concerned’ as trial prosecution begins
Russell Brand said he is feeling “concerned” as prosecutors begin presenting their case against him in his trial on rape and sexual assault charges.
What is Brand accused of?
The 51-year-old entertainer faces three allegations of rape, three counts of sexual assault and one allegation of indecent assault, after being accused by six women.
Previous court hearings have been told how Brand, who denies all charges, is accused of raping a woman in a hotel room at a Labour Party conference in Bournemouth.
He also allegedly grabbed a TV worker’s breasts and forced her into a sex act in a toilet and is said to have kissed and groped a radio station worker.
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More detail
- The accusations against Brand date from 1999 to 2009.
- A jury was selected at Southwark Crown Court on Monday and Tuesday, before prosecutor Riel Karmy-Jones KC opened the prosecution’s case on Wednesday.
- Arriving at court, Brand said: “Today I feel blessed. I feel, of course, concerned but hopeful that this process will lead to good outcomes for everybody involved.”
- Brand’s wife, Laura Gallacher, has supported him at court this week as the case continues.
What has been said in court
The court heard on Wednesday that Brand is “ruthless, calculated and manipulative”, a “sexual predator” according to the prosecution, who raped and groped women to satisfy his “huge sexual appetite”.
He was “obsessed” with sex and treated women as a “means to an end,” the court was told. Brand was described as “child-like in his expectation that his every desire should be met”.
“Regardless of who they were and what they said or did, the defendant was not deterred… He could be nice when he wanted to be – funny, undoubtedly; charming, likeable even… But then demanding, entitled, a flirt with a huge sexual appetite… Uppermost in his mind was his insatiable desire to get what he wanted”
prosecutor Riel Karmy-Jones KC
A man’s body has been recovered, with two others still unaccounted for, after a fishing vessel went missing off the Outer Hebrides.
Everything we know so far
HM Coastguard have said they were made aware of the missing ship, which was sailing off Port Ness on the Isle of Lewis, at around 9.20pm on Tuesday.
- Police Scotland were notified at about 11.35pm. The force said three men were aboard.
- The body of one man has been recovered. The man’s family have been made aware and are being supported by officers.
Search under way
A Coastguard aeroplane, two helicopters, six rescue teams, two RNLI lifeboats, a local vessel and Police Scotland are involved in the search, which is being carried out amid a yellow weather warning for high winds in the region.
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Pope Leo diagnosed with lung cancer after surgery
Pope Leo XIV has been diagnosed with cancer following a “successful” operation to remove the lower lobe of his right lung, the Vatican has announced.
A common type of lung cancer
Doctors confirmed the diagnosis of lung adenocarcinoma, a common type of lung cancer, after pre-planned surgery at Rome’s Gemelli Hospital. Dr Luigi Carbone and Professor Stefano Margaritora said cancer had been suspected by pre-operative tests.
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What else do we know?
- The surgery lasted around 90 minutes and had no complications.
- Pope Leo had a “peaceful night” in hospital, where he is expected to remain for about a week.
- The 71-year-old pontiff cancelled all public events until 20 October to give him time to recover.
- It is understood that King Charles is writing privately to the Pope to pass on his well-wishes.
Hope for quick recovery
- The Vatican did not give more details of the operation, but Margaritora is an expert in robotic surgical techniques and Video-Assisted Thoracic Surgery (Vats).
- Using small incisions by endoscopic instruments equipped with a high-definition camera, Vats reduces surgical trauma and can result in faster recovery.
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Reactions from religious leaders and supporters
Archbishop Richard Moth, leader of the Catholics in England and Wales, said: “I have sent a message on behalf of all in the Catholic Church in England and Wales, assuring him [the Pope] of our prayers.”
- Large crowds gathered outside the hospital to wait for the Pope before his surgery. One well-wisher, Carla, told the BBC she was “taken aback” by the news, adding: “It turns out he’s vulnerable too.”
New dinosaur species discovered from ‘overlooked’ fossil
A new species of dinosaur has been identified from an “overlooked” fossil which was found on the Isle of Wight more than 100 years ago, researchers have said.
The history of the fossil
The fossil, which was a piece of the back of a skull, was originally found at the foot of a cliff on the south-west coast of the Isle of Wight by amateur palaeontologist Reginald Walter Tooley. It was procured by the Natural History Museum in 1924.
Dr Cassius Morrison of University College London said it was a “real mystery” why the fossil had been overlooked.
A megaraptoran
The new dinosaur, named Invictibellatrix amberina (with the former meaning “unconquered female warrior”), has and is about the size of a large tiger.
It is part of a group of agile, two-legged carnivores called . These were closely related to tyrannosaurus but had more slender heads and used their claws to attack prey rather than their jaws.
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A mysterious species
- Megaraptors are seen as the most mysterious of the large carnivorous dinosaurs, with few fossils found.
- Until this discovery, no megaraptorans had been found in Europe.
- Researchers suggest invictibellatrix would have been three to four meters long and just over a metre and a half tall.
- They also speculate it would likely have had feathers and 10-20cm long claws.
- Its diet is thought to have consisted of small dinosaurs, lizards and mammals.
Rules, London’s oldest restaurant, given to National Trust
The home of Rules, London’s oldest restaurant which has been there since 1798, has been donated to the National Trust.
The charity said the donation of the £11m site by J-P Mayhew, its owner of 40 years, would secure the future of a building where “kings dined and writers and politicians plotted”.
The freehold acquisition included visitor books, menus, caricatures, photographs, stained glass and signs. Annual rent from the restaurant business will also go into conservation work.
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Famous diners
Rules is no stranger to celebrity, having welcomed figures from and – who would rendezvous with his mistresses there – to and over the past two centuries.
The restaurant, located at 34-35 Maiden Lane in Covent Garden, central London, has outlasted empires and overcome challenges including the Blitz during the Second World War as well as plans for a dual carriageway.
A long future ahead
This place is an outstanding piece of living history… it has defied the odds to be standing here today, doors still open and treacle sponge still on the menu. Mr Mayhew’s extraordinary generosity, and the care he has poured into Rules over many decades, mean this beloved place has a future measured not in years but generations.
Hilary McGrady, director-general of the National Trust
However, Healey will leave the rates of CGT untouched on 28 October, The i Paper has been told.
CGT currently sits at 18 per cent for basic-rate income taxpayers and 24 per cent for higher and additional-rate taxpayers.
The reported earlier this week that Healey had rejected the idea of equalising CGT with income tax – a proposal which has previously been backed by Labour figures such as First Secretary of State Louise Haigh and the Defence Secretary Wes Streeting.
There have been suggestions that he could still increase CGT without fully aligning it with income tax rates, but this will not happen, a government insider indicated.
The Treasury is understood to be concerned that any further increases would result in it losing tax revenue. The current levels are believed to be the optimum for raising the most money. If the tax is set any higher, then fewer people would pay it as they would seek to avoid it by not selling assets. There have also been warnings that any rise would discourage foreign investment.
Key adviser warns against rise
On Wednesday, Lord Jim O’Neill, a financier and former minister who has acted as an informal adviser to Andy Burnham, told MPs that it would be a mistake to put up CGT.
Appearing in front of the Commons Treasury Committee, O’Neill said that the UK economy is showing “cautiously encouraging trends” and “the last thing the Budget should be doing is to do things to interrupt them”.
“Given how business feels so beaten up over however far you want to think, any tax increase needs to be really thought through more carefully than before, especially things like CGT,” he said.
Asked which he would opt for between a CGT hike or an increase to bank taxes – another change which Healey is believed to be mulling – O’Neill said: “I’d be more opposed to anything on CGT.
“If there has to be some numbers found [in tax], I would think it might to default to some modest move on bank taxes, but I wouldn’t be a fan of that either.”
Tom Goddard, assistant manager at tax specialists Blick Rothenberg, told The i Paper that any increase to CGT was always likely to be confined to a “token” rise of one or two per cent, because people can simply avoid paying the tax by holding onto their assets.
“As CGT is broadly optional, if it increases too much, people will be dissuaded from selling their assets,” he said.
Goddard added that “targeting banks and gambling companies” would be “the easiest win for the Chancellor”, but Blick Rothenberg expected it to be “a steady as she goes budget”.
“There is very little the Chancellor can do when it comes to tweaking taxation,” he said.
What taxes could Healey hike?
Healey is still likely to need to find some cash from somewhere. His fiscal headroom – in essence a financial buffer – is believed to have slipped by some economists to as low as £12bn from £24bn because of the Iran war. He is also under pressure to fund cost of living help – particularly on energy bills.
A temporary 5p a litre cut in fuel duty is set to expire at the end of the year, but the high cost of fuel is putting Healey under pressure to scrap the planned phased reintroduction.
He is also under pressure to increase defence spending and plug a £4.7bn gap in the Defence Investment Plan.
On Monday, the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) warned he would have to find £35bn to avoid making cuts.
Economists speculate the most likely options remaining are a raid on banks in the form of an increase in the levy on profits, or windfall taxes on oil and gas giants.
Gambling firms could also be in Healey’s sights, with suggestions he could double the levy on high-stakes slot machines from 20 to 40 per cent.
A Treasury spokesman said: “As has always been the case, decisions on tax are a matter for the Chancellor to set out at fiscal events, rather than routinely commenting on rumour, speculation or proposals.”