'A slip of the tongue' Labour admits Brown's TV gaffe on tax relief
UK - Gordon Brown's suggestion the Labour Party would extend its policy to restrict pensions tax relief to include people earning more than £100,000 was a "slip of the tongue", a Labour spokesman says.
The prime minister provoked confusion last night when he said Labour would "take away tax relief for those above £100,000 at a higher rate" as part of its deficit reduction plan.
The apparent announcement of a new policy in the Leaders' Debate sparked a furious reaction from experts in the industry.
Hargreaves Lansdown head of pensions research Tom McPhail said reducing the pensions tax relief threshold had been discussed prior to the budget - and admitted he would "assume the worst".
Barnett Waddingham partner Clive Grimley claimed the move - which would have affected 304,000 people - would have been an example of "yet another stealth tax".
However, the spokesman insisted the policy in the manifesto - which stated that the measure would apply to those earning more than £130,000 - still stood.
Latest stories
Raise state pension age to 75 and boost 'employee-tailored' mid-life MOTs, says think-tank
The Centre for Social Justice is calling for the state pension age to be raised to 70 by 2028 and to 75 by 2035, a much faster rise than currently planned.
Court blocks £12bn annuity transfer from Prudential to Rothesay Life
The High Court has blocked the £12bn transfer of Prudential's annuity book to Rothesay Life, citing the insurer's lack of "established reputation" and differing "capital management policies".
Five stories you may have missed this week
This week's top stories included Legal & General acquiring MyFutureNow to provide a dashboard service to customers, while also agreeing a hybrid buy-in with a Hitachi scheme.
Most read
