The rich should pay their fair share

8.05.00pm UTC (GMT +0000) Tue 19th Jun 2007

The Liberal Democrats today revealed plans to ensure that the rich pay a fairer amount in tax. The proposals are designed to tackle the growing inequality in Britain, and the problem of people being priced out of the housing market by non-domiciles.

The six-point plan will:

· Abolish Capital Gains Tax taper relief

· Make non-domiciles pay Capital Gains Tax on the property and other assets they buy and sell in the UK

· Close the loophole that allows individuals to "move" their houses offshore and so only pay 0.5% stamp duty

· Lift the threshold on inheritance tax to protect middle England by extending the seven-year rule on gifts

· Switch from Council Tax to Local Income Tax

· Strengthen the rules for shareholder votes on executive pay

Liberal Democrat Shadow Chancellor and deputy leader Vince Cable MP - "There is a growing sense of unfairness in the tax system"

Commenting, Liberal Democrat Shadow Chancellor and deputy leader, Vince Cable MP said "There is a growing sense of unfairness in the tax system with millions of people paying increasing amounts of tax. This includes people paying 40 per cent tax on relatively moderate incomes who will also pay inheritance tax at 40 per cent and stamp duty at three to four per cent, but who are discovering that the super-rich pay none of these things."

Continuing Vince said "The rich and well-advised exploit loopholes and end up paying 10 per cent tax rather than 40 per cent. Non-domiciles taking advantage of offshore trusts avoid Capital Gains Tax and people avoid stamp duty by registering their house as being owned by a company."

"The current system is creating a corrosive sense of unfairness. The Liberal Democrats have come forward with a series of practical measures to ensure that everybody pays their fair share. This will allow us to offer tax cuts to the less well-off."

"We recognise the benefits that wealth creators bring, but there has to be a sense of fairness in the tax system. The endless complexity generated by Gordon Brown's tinkering has created far too many loopholes."