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Tax has been front and centre of the general election battle in the first 10 days, with the main parties promising not to increase income tax, national insurance or VAT rates and the Conservatives proposing a tax cut for pensioners.

The Conservatives say their new 'triple lock plus' policy "demonstrates [they] are on the side of pensioners". But what exactly are they proposing and how would it affect pensioners on different incomes?

Thank you, Gary. I very much look forward to being President of the CIOT over the coming year.

Departing CIOT President Gary Ashford gave his valedictory speech at the Institute's Annual General Meeting on 30 May 2024

Finance Bill (No.2) 2024 is now an Act. The Bill completed its public bill committee stage in a single session on Tuesday 21 May, with MPs taking just 90 minutes to debate and agree clauses on Stamp Duty Land Tax, Transfer of Assets Abroad and other aspects of the tax system. Following the calling of an election the Bill was rushed through its remaining stages, with a minimal Commons third reading debate on Thursday 23 May and a similarly brief Lords debate on Friday 24 May, gaining Royal Assent the same day.

MSPs unanimously backed the Scottish Aggregates Tax following a Stage 1 debate last Thursday, as MSPs from across the parties spoke in favour of a Scottish Finance Bill.

A new report has criticised HMRC for providing poor customer service levels “for too long”, saying the department needs to rethink plans to move more taxpayer queries from phone lines to digital platforms.

The government has agreed with all the recommendations of the House of Commons Public Accounts Committee (PAC) to improve the performance of HMRC following the committee’s report which drew evidence from CIOT and others.

MPs debated measures around income tax, corporation tax and the energy profits levy at Finance Bill 2024 Committee of Whole House.

During a House of Lords debate on 29 April, peers urged the government to consider replacing excise duty on fuel with road pricing. The minister said that the government has no plans to change the current tax mix in this area.