Bank chiefs have written to the Chancellor, John Healey, warning that higher bank taxes could drive businesses out of the UK, City AM reports. The lobbying follows reports that Healey plans to raise taxes on banks in his Budget on 28 October.
City AM says Healey has also met bank bosses and was tight-lipped on tax. He is understood to have told them the UK faces a "challenging" fiscal picture.
The Conservative leader, Kemi Badenoch, has warned Healey against raising taxes on banks, Daily Business Group reports. Ahead of her visit to Edinburgh on Thursday 15 October, City AM said the Conservatives planned to accuse the government of "bending the knee to left-wing backbenchers and trade union paymasters". That was the party's planned line as previewed, and it has not been confirmed as delivered.
Daily Business Group, citing The Guardian, reports that reversing Jeremy Hunt's cut to the bank surcharge would raise upwards of £2bn a year. The surcharge currently stands at 3% on top of corporation tax. That figure has not been independently checked, and neither the Treasury nor the OBR has published a costing.
City AM reports that some lobbyists have called for a windfall tax instead.