Winchester MP slams 'jobs tax' as workers face £3,750 hit
The rise in employers’ National Insurance has come into effect with employees in Winchester and across the Meon Valley facing an estimated hit of almost £3,750 in total by the end of the decade, as the jobs tax gets passed down to them as lower real wages, Liberal Democrat research has found.
At the Spring Statement, the OBR reported that 76% of the rise in employers' national insurance would be passed down to workers through lower real wages.
The research by the Liberal Democrats has found that this means on average an employee in Winchester would be worse off by roughly £3,750 by the end of the decade, with workers experiencing a hit of nearly £600 in the next year on average.
Local Liberal Democrat MP, Danny Chambers, says that farmers and small businesses could be on the brink following the tax hike. They said the Chancellor “must immediately scrap her jobs tax” and are calling on the Chancellor to overhaul the “broken” business rates system to unleash growth in the local area.
Liberal Democrat MP for Winchester, Danny Chambers said:
“The Chancellor’s jobs tax is setting already stretched household finances up for another battering right in the middle of a cost of living crisis. After years of Conservative economic vandalism, this Labour government is now putting a strain on local farmers, which will drive up the cost of British food at a time when food security is vital in this unstable time.
"The Government cannot go on pretending that their jobs tax won’t hit people’s pockets. Our farmers and hard-working business owners will bear the brunt of this crushing decision, on top of the tariffs recently imposed by President Trump, the strain will become too great on some businesses and the repercussions will eventually filter back to the entire British public in the form of higher prices.
“The Chancellor must immediately scrap her jobs tax and overhaul the broken business rates system. This is the only way to unleash the massive growth potential of Winchester’s farming and business community and protect local household finances.”