Scotland faces £822 million 'tax bombshell' due to Tory National Insurance hike

dailyrecord.co.uk:

Families and businesses in Scotland are facing a tax bombshell of over £822m this year due to the UK Government decision to hike National Insurance.The move to raise taxes on workers - instead of unearned income like property - was imposed by Boris Johnson as part of a Tory plan to fund social care in England.The NI rise - which takes effect today - comes on top of a 54 per cent increase to Ofgem’s price cap and increases to council tax and water bills, mortgages, rents, food and transport costs.Research by the Lib Dems has found the tax hike - which Scots will feel on their next payday - shows families in Scotland are set to pay out an estimated £329m more in National Insurance contributions.

This comes to an average of almost £130 per household, at a time when families are already facing soaring heating bills.The Conservatives’ broken promise is also set to hit high streets across Scotland hard with a £493m tax raid on local businesses including shops, restaurants and cafes.

The Lib Dems want the UK Government to slash VAT to 17.5 per cent - claiming it would save families £600 per year.Christine Jardine, the Scottish Lib Dem economy spokeswoman, said: "Families in Scotland are being crippled by the worst cost of living crisis in a generation, struggling to put food on the table and afford sky-high energy bills. "The last thing they need is an unfair tax raid.

Yet the Conservatives are piling on the misery by breaking their promise not to hike up national insurance, in a move that will hit our community hard."The MP for Edinburgh West added: "We are fighting for a fair deal that would put money back into people’s pockets through an emergency tax cut. "Our plans would kill two birds with one stone, helping those