Good morning and welcome to your Morning Briefing for Friday 21 November 2025. To get this in your inbox every morning click here.
Advisers brace for Budget as IHT hits £5.2bn
Inheritance tax (IHT) receipts reached £5.2bn in the first seven months of the 2025/26 tax year, £200m higher than the same period last year, according to new HMRC data.
The figures extend a long-running upward trend and come days ahead of the Autumn Budget, intensifying scrutiny of how frozen thresholds and changing rules are drawing more estates into scope.
Families caught as £100k tax squeeze deepens, says Rathbones
Nearly 2.3 million people are expected to earn more than £100,000 a year by 2028–29, pulling hundreds of thousands of families into the UK’s highest marginal tax band and risking the loss of childcare benefits worth thousands of pounds.
This is according to new HMRC data obtained by wealth manager Rathbones under a Freedom of Information request.
Slashed CGT thresholds trigger hike in clients needing support
Cuts to capital gains tax (CGT) thresholds has led to a jump in the number of clients needing support, data by Financial Software Ltd has revealed.
The news comes amid speculation that CGT thresholds could be slashed further in the chancellor’s upcoming Budget.
Through research carried out by the lang cat, advisers reported that, on average, 18% of their clients were impacted by the tax in 2022/23. This more than doubled to 37% in the 2024/25 tax year.
Quote Of The Day
Advisers need to feel confident they can service clients with lower wealth profiles as efficiently as possible
– Jeremy Mugridge, AJ Bell advised marketing director, comments on FCA data showing the number of client accounts ‘ceased’ by advisers climbed sharply in 2024
A new study from Charles Stanley highlights widespread gaps in tax knowledge among high-net-worth individuals.
Many are failing to use core allowances, leaving them vulnerable to changes that could affect their financial position. Key statistics:
49%
of wealthy individuals do not fully understand, have not heard of, or don’t know what the capital gains tax (CGT) allowance is.
37%
say they make the most of the CGT allowance, while 32% are unsure if they do, 12% think it does not apply to them, and 12% admit they do not use it.
65%
do not understand or know what the inheritance tax nil-rate band is.
60%
say the same about the residence nil-rate band.
41%
do not understand or know what tax relief applies to charitable donations.
50%
do not know or understand business relief.
49%
do not understand the annual gifting allowance.
53%
of married couples are not, or do not know if they are, making the most of the marriage allowance.
Source: Charles Stanley
In Other News
Ortec Finance has appointed Jelmer Brons as chief commercial officer, effective November 2025.
He joins the firm’s Executive Team from S&P Global, where he was head of European sales for Risk Solutions.
Brons brings extensive experience in commercial strategy, business development and international financial services, and will be responsible for supporting Ortec Finance’s global growth plans and client relationships.
“I am honoured to join Ortec Finance at such a pivotal moment,” Brons said.
“The company’s commitment to innovation, growth and client success aligns perfectly with my own values. I look forward to working with the team to expand our global reach and deliver even greater value to our clients.”
CEO Ton van Welie said Brons’ background and leadership skills would play an important role in advancing the firm’s ambitions.
He added that the appointment underlines Ortec Finance’s efforts to build a strong leadership team and company culture
From Elsewhere
Households face unexpected rise in energy prices in new year (BBC News)
Budget leaves Rachel Reeves facing a £30bn reckoning (Bloomberg)
Donald Trump and the rise of “insider capitalism” (The Economist)
Did You See?
This government likes to give us plenty of early warning of Budget days, writes Rachel Vahey, head of public policy at AJ Bell.
We got a clear 12 weeks’ notice of chancellor Rachel Reeves’ second Budget to be held on 26 November. And gosh, have those weeks dragged.
By setting such a late Budget date, we have been existing in a twilight world full of rumours for the last two months, where the government seems determined not to comment on ruling anything in or, unfortunately, anything out.
Most of the rumours so far have centred on pensions tax relief and cutting the maximum pensions tax-free cash lump sum. In practice, such a move is unlikely because of the outcry it would cause, including among the public sector who (quite rightly) treasure their superior pension provision.
Plus, it would be unprecedented if it wasn’t accompanied by robust protection, meaning pension savers’ current entitlements would unlikely be cut.
However, there are other rumours doing the rounds. Up to very recently, the government seemed wedded to its manifesto promise not to increase income tax, national insurance contributions, VAT or corporation tax. That promise doesn’t seem as strong now with Reeves’ statement that ‘each must do their bit’ threatening future income-tax rises.
With receipts predicted to reach £9.1bn for the Treasury in 2025-26, IHT may still make an appearance in the Budget
But even if Reeves pulls on the income-tax lever to fill in part of the UK’s economic black hole, she may still look for increased receipts from other taxes.
