A budget for the self-employed
The Chancellor has a record of springing pension surprises in the Budget, but just suppose for a moment that the reports are true and that George Osborne plans to abolish the top rates of tax relief on pension contributions and move to a flat rate for everyone somewhere between 25 per cent and 33 per cent. That would divert public spending from the highest earners, who now receive tax relief at 40 or 45 per cent, while increasing support for the lower paid, who face the biggest risk of poverty in old age.