New Rachel Reeves adviser said ‘codger’ pensioners should pay more taxes

Rachel Reeves has been criticised for appointing an adviser who suggested “codger” pensioners should face higher taxes and be stripped of free TV licences.

Last week, the shadow chancellor unveiled Sir Edward Troup, a former head of HMRC, as part of a panel of experts advising her on tackling tax avoidance.

But she has faced a backlash over the move after historic comments emerged in which Sir Edward called for sweeping tax rises, especially targeted at the elderly.

Sir Edward, also previously a special adviser to Ken Clarke, the former Tory chancellor, made the comments at a think tank event in November 2019.

Speaking at a round table hosted by the Resolution Foundation he described pensioners as an “under-taxed generation” who “have had it ridiculously good”.

He suggested that perks for the over-75s, such as free TV licences, should instead be handed to younger working families who needed financial help more.

‘We should be looking at the codgers’

Talking about the need to raise more money, Sir Edward told the event: “Where should we be looking? You should look to my generation.

“I’m a baby boomer, I was born in 1955, and we have had it ridiculously good. We’ve benefited from low interest rates, high inflation when we bought our houses, we’ve enjoyed good returns on whatever we’ve managed to put into our pension funds.

“We’re not paying national insurance if we’re still working after the age of 60, and it’s a complete disgrace. I am part of an under-taxed generation, so I’m afraid we are going to have to look at the more senior members of society.”

Sir Edward then cited “great analysis” by the Financial Times which he said highlighted “the ridiculous nature of giving free television licences to the over-75s who are much better off than young families with children”.

He added: “They’re the ones who deserve the free television licences anyway, so we should be looking at the codgers.”

Labour’s new adviser also argued that taxes on working families and businesses would need to be hiked, including rises in income tax, national insurance, VAT and corporation tax.

He said doing so would require sleight of hand because it would be unpopular and “it is very hard to be honest to people about tax”.

Sunak hits out

Since his remarks, income tax thresholds have been repeatedly frozen, dragging millions of Britons into paying higher rates.

Corporation tax has also been increased from 19pc to 25pc, whilst national insurance has recently been cut by 4p and VAT has remained unchanged.

At Prime Minister’s Questions on Wednesday, Rishi Sunak said: “This adviser thinks that supporting pensioners is ‘a complete disgrace’. He believes their free TV licences are ‘ridiculous’.

“And if it wasn’t bad enough, this adviser has called for increases in income tax, in national insurance and in VAT. It all makes sense now – that’s who the shadow chancellor has been copying and pasting from.”

Sir Keir Starmer, the Labour leader, said “no single politician has ever put tax up more times” than the Prime Minister, who was previously chancellor.

A Labour spokesman hit out at “desperate stuff from a Conservative government that crashed the economy and left the tax burden at the highest it has been for 70 years, with the average family set to be £870 worse off under Rishi Sunak’s tax plans”.

He added: “The Tories should spend less time smearing former civil servants and more time explaining how they will fund the £46 billion black hole in their spending plans.”