Rollng coverage of the latest economic and financial news
- National insurance rates rise today, raising tax on workers and firms
- But NI threshold will increase in July, helping lower-paid
- Johnson: Need to provide NHS more funds
- Shanghai’s ‘grim’ Covid outbreak threatens more global supply chain disruption
- What to expect in the UK’s energy strategy to be published this week
The Health Secretary has defended the decision to hike up national insurance for millions of workers, saying it is “right that we pay for what we are going to use as a country”.
Sajid Javid told Sky News:
“It kicks in today, the new health and social care levy. All of the funding raised from it is going to go towards the extra £39bn we are going to put in over the next three years to health and social care.
“It’s going to pay in the NHS for activity levels that are some 130% of pre-pandemic, it’s going to be nine million more scans, tests and procedures, meaning people will get seen a lot earlier.
You raise it directly for people today, that’s through taxes, or you borrow it, which essentially you are asking the next generation to pay for it.
“I think it is right that we pay for what we are going to use as a country but we do it in a fair way. This levy, the way it is being raised is the top 15% of earners will pay almost 50%. I think that is the right way to do this.”
