Analysis seen by the Sunday Express indicates that Labour-held constituencies in England could be hit with an average death tax charge of £76,196. The figure comes from research by Reform UK into the impact of a 10% levy on inheritances, a policy Andy Burnham has backed since his time as health secretary under Gordon Brown.
The Prime Minister has made social care reform a central part of his premiership and has suggested creating a National Care Service. When approached by this newspaper, the Labour Party did not rule out the so-called death tax.
Nigel Farage: Reform will oppose the levy
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage told the Sunday Express: "Andy Burnham still refuses to rule out a death tax. Unlike inheritance tax, this will indiscriminately affect every single family up and down the country with no exception and punish people at their lowest point. Now it turns out that his plans, which he will implement with no mandate, will hit families in Labour constituencies with a £76,000 bill. Reform will fight it every step of the way."
The Labour Party spokesperson said: "With Andy Burnham’s leadership, the Labour Government will finally confront the social care crisis Westminster has ignored for decades, giving people dignity, security and support while easing pressure on the NHS. We won't fix this through politics as usual, but by focusing on problem solving rather than point scoring."
How the £76,196 figure was calculated
Researchers used the median house price in each of the 357 constituencies in England won by Labour at the 2024 general election, combined with statistics on the ratio of property wealth to household wealth. This allowed them to estimate the average charge per household under a 10% levy.
Current inheritance rules include exemptions, such as allowing married couples to pass on up to £1 million of assets to their children without paying tax. Mr Burnham previously said during his Makerfield by-election campaign that he would "look at all of the kind of implications" around inheritance tax and social care.
TaxPayers' Alliance: 'A staggering raid'
John O'Connell, chief executive of the TaxPayers' Alliance, said: "A 10% levy would be a staggering raid on households. These figures show how quickly these kinds of taxes move from slogans about fixing funding in social care to bills landing on ordinary family homes. The Prime Minister should stop flirting with this idea and focus on cutting spending and easing the burden on taxpayers."
Conservative Shadow Chancellor Sir Mel Stride said: "As Kemi set out in her letter to the Prime Minister, the Conservatives would be happy to work with the Government. But a new system has to be fair to those who have saved, and it can’t be funded by more taxes or more borrowing. Labour have already increased spending by over £150billion a year this parliament, funded through higher taxes and more borrowing. Britain does not need another tax. Only the Conservatives have set out a plan for £50billion in savings to cut taxes, reduce borrowing and build a stronger economy and a stronger country."
Government says no plans for death tax
A government spokesman said there "are no plans" for a death tax, adding: "Fixing our social care system will require building a broad consensus. The old way of doing politics has held up social care reform for decades."
Reform MP Robert Jenrick said: "Andy Burnham’s death tax would make a mockery of his so-called Makerfield test. The average nurse in Makerfield could be saddled with a £30,000 bill after her passing if Burnham proceeds with this. How can he defend that?"
Mr Jenrick repeated his calls for benefits to be axed, foreign aid to rich countries ended and illegal migration brought under control. He added: "A universal death tax would leave Britons the most heavily taxed people after death in the entire Western world, robbing people's children and grandchildren of their inheritance."
He said his party believed "a family's home is a legacy, not a revenue stream."
Joanna Marchong of the think tank Onward said: "A 10% levy on estates would raise barely a third of what it needs to - scrapping inheritance tax and funding free personal care costs up to £21 billion a year, and his levy raises £6 billion. That's a £14 billion hole in his flagship policy alone."
