The former Chancellor characterised the proposal to eliminate death duties as a “potent weapon” in the Conservative Party’s arsenal, likely to be deployed given their current polling status.
On his Political Currency podcast, Mr. Osborne remarked, “I am still waiting for one significant tax initiative. The Tories have yet to make a definitive statement on tax policy, and I believe a pledge to abolish, or nearly abolish, inheritance tax is likely forthcoming.”
In 2007, while the Conservatives were in opposition, Mr. Osborne pledged to effectively eliminate inheritance tax by raising the threshold to £1 million.
On the podcast Tuesday, he commented, “Whether it will have the same impact in 2024 is uncertain – but if you are deploying every strategy for this election, it seems quite likely you would use that tool.”
Last month, Jeremy Hunt described inheritance tax as “profoundly anti-Conservative” and stated that the Tories would eliminate taxes that discourage earning.
Mr. Osborne noted that inheritance tax has “a particular resonance in politics beyond the number of people directly affected each year.” He explained, “For every estate that pays inheritance tax, there are many beneficiaries, such as children and grandchildren. Due to rising house prices, many people anticipate falling into the inheritance tax bracket in the future, making the statistics somewhat misleading.”