The distortion of capital gains tax over the past two decades is a prime example of how policymakers have little respect for those investing for their future, whether they be savers, landlords or business founders.
The meddling began with the last Labour government when the late Alistair Darling stripped investors of two vital allowances.
The first was the taper that lowered your liability the longer you had held the asset for, and the second offset your bill against inflation so you could not be taxed on a real terms loss.
The most recent tweaks were equally damaging when Jeremy Hunt later slashed the annual tax-free allowance from £12,300 right down to £3,000.
Successive governments have turned capital gains into something far more pernicious than investors were led to believe it was when they first made their investments.
These relentless tweaks now mean you can be liable to pay it – even if your investment has fallen in value in real terms.
The very fact that Rachel Reeves is considering turning up the heat on investors again is symptomatic of a government that doesn’t understand that a line needs to be drawn between what is yours and what is theirs.
We’ve truly entered a worrying new era of government entitlement, justified only by spurious claims of a £40bn “black hole”.
After years of meddling, yet another increase to capital gains tax would be nothing short of theft, an attack on sensible saving and investment reward.
If Ms Reeves truly wants to spark growth, she needs to leave our investments well alone and encourage prudence rather than penalise it.
