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Rachel Reeves hints she could water down non-dom policy and tells LBC 'we'll always look at the evidence'
23 June 2025, 13:17 | Updated: 23 June 2025, 19:51
Rachel Reeves has hinted she could water down her non-dom tax policy - telling LBC "we'll always look at the evidence".
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The Chancellor suggested there may be a change to come after reports that she was looking at options to back-track.
But she slapped down reports that thousands of wealthy people had fled the country as a result of her shutting down the tax loophole for overseas earnings, saying: "I don't recognise those figures".
The Labour Government abolished the non-dom tax status in April, which is where UK residents whose permanent home or domicile for tax purposes is outside the UK.
Last year, former Conservative chancellor Jeremy Hunt revealed plans to scrap the tax status before successor Rachel Reeves sped up the process.
Ms Reeves has been under pressure to look again at the policy, after the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) found it would bring in less money for the Treasury than previously thought.
This morning the Reform boss, Nigel Farage, vowed to introduce a flat £250,000 fee for wealthier Brits to be allowed to come to the UK - and make them able to dodge inheritance tax rules too.
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He said he would plough the money into cash bungs for poorer Brits instead.
Ms Reeves told LBC "if you make Britain your home, you should pay your taxes here and under this government."
But she added: "Of course we'll always look at the evidence and the data."
She lashed out at Mr Farage's new policy - accusing them of a "tax giveaway for foreign billionaires".
And she said it would be more generous than under the former PM, Rishi Sunak, whose wife Akshata Murty was a non-dom for tax purposes.
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Ms Reeves told LBC of the non-dom exodus: "I don't recognise those numbers. But today Reform have offered a huge tax break for foreign born millionaires, whilst ordinary working people have had to endure years of rising bills and weak wage growth.
"My priority, this Labour government's priority, is putting more money in working people's pockets, not providing tax breaks to foreign billionaires."
When grilled on whether she is looking at softening her changes at all, she added: "Well, of course we'll always look at the evidence and the data.
"But what Reform are offering today is a tax giveaway to foreign billionaires. A scheme that is even more generous than what the Tories had under Rishi Sunak.
"If they did that, they'd either have to increase taxes on working people to make the sums add up or cut public services like charging for the NHS, which is obviously a long-held view and desire of Nigel Farage."
