Sir Keir Starmer says those with assets are ‘not working people’ – paving way for possible tax rises
Sir Keir Starmer has hinted at possible tax rises for those who own shares and assets, saying they do not fit his definition of “working people”.
The prime minister was asked to share his definition of a “working” person after Labour’s election-winning manifesto promised “not increase taxes on working people” – but who exactly that covers has not been entirely clear.
The debate over the definition intensified after ministers refused to rule out raising national insurance on employers in the budget – which tax experts believe would ultimately be passed on to employees and workers – for example, through lower wages.
Sir Keir said he believed a working person was somebody who “goes out and earns their living, usually paid in a sort of monthly cheque” but they did not have the ability to “write a cheque to get out of difficulties”.
Asked by Sky News’ political editor Beth Rigby whether he would classify a working person as someone whose income derived from assets, such as shares or property, the prime minister said: “Well, they wouldn’t come within my definition.”
Politics latest: Tories accuse government of ‘broken promises’ over budget rule change
Pressed on whether that meant taxes for those people could go up, the prime minister said: “You can probably give me any number of examples… you’re asking me for a definition of who’s a working person, and then you’re making assumptions about what that tax might be in relation to.”
Inheritance tax, charged on the estate of someone who has died, and capital gains tax, imposed on the profit from the sale of capital assets, have been touted as the two most likely to see a rise.
Capital gains tax is currently levied on most personal possessions worth £6,000 or more, including second homes, most shares not held in an ISA and business assets.
Rachel Reeves, the chancellor, has refused to rule out increasing them, saying in August: “On spending, on welfare, and tax, we’re going to have to make a series of difficult decisions, but I’ll set out that detail in the right and proper way on the 30 October at that budget.”
Both Sir Keir and Ms Reeves have repeatedly warned that “tough” decisions lie ahead in the budget after it claimed to have uncovered a £22bn black hole in the nation’s finances left by the previous government.
According to people close to the budget, the gap in funding identified by the chancellor is more than twice what was previously thought – at £40bn.
The chancellor admitted on Thursday she would rewrite the government’s fiscal rules in next week’s budget to allow her to increase borrowing for public investment by around £50bn.
Read more:
What are Labour’s fiscal rules
Apology for slave trade ‘not on the agenda’, says No 10
Speaking to Sky News in Washington DC, the chancellor said the self-imposed rule under which borrowing must be falling by the fifth year of economic forecasts will be redefined from the current measure of public sector net debt.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Chancellor to rewrite fiscal rules
She insisted the change was necessary to end years of declining public investment and deliver on Labour‘s promise to deliver growth.
“Under the plans that I have inherited from the previous Conservative government, public sector net investment as a share of our economy was due to decline steeply during the course of this parliament,” she said.
“I don’t want that path for Britain when there are so many opportunities in industries from life sciences to carbon capture, storage and clean energy to AI and technology, as well as the need to repair our crumbling schools and hospitals.”
Politics
Met Police launches investigation into suspended Reform MP Rupert Lowe over ‘verbal threats’
The Metropolitan Police has launched an investigation into suspended Reform MP Rupert Lowe.
It comes after the party revealed they had referred him to police and stripped him of the whip on Friday, alleging he made “verbal threats” against chairman Zia Yousaf – which Mr Lowe denies.
Politics Live: Council to drop controversial bin collection plan
A spokesperson for the Met told Sky News they have now launched an investigation “into an allegation of a series of verbal threats made by a 67-year-old man”.
They added: “Our original statement referred to alleged threats made in December 2024. We would like to clarify that when this matter was reported to us, it referred to a series of alleged threats made between December 2024 and February 2025.
“Further enquiries are ongoing at this stage.”
In response to the update, Mr Lowe said he was unaware of the specific allegations but denied wrongdoing.
“I have instructed lawyers to represent me in this matter,” he said.
“My lawyers have made contact with the Met Police, and have made them aware of my willingness to co-operate in any necessary investigation.
“My lawyers have not yet received any contact from the police. It is highly unusual for the police to disclose anything to the media at this stage of an investigation.
“I remain unaware of the specific allegations, but in any event, I deny any wrongdoing.
“The allegations are entirely untrue.”
Why was Rupert Lowe suspended?
In a statement on Friday, Reform claimed it had received evidence from staff of “derogatory and discriminating remarks made about women” by Mr Lowe, 67, who was elected to his Great Yarmouth seat last year.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Reform UK row: Who said what?
The statement also claimed Mr Lowe had “on at least two occasions made threats of physical violence” against Mr Yusuf and “accordingly, this matter is with the police”.
Mr Lowe denied the claims, describing them as “vexatious” and said it was “no surprise” that it had come a day after he raised “reasonable and constructive questions” about Reform leader Nigel Farage.
In an interview with the Daily Mail on Thursday, Mr Lowe had said Reform remains a “protest party led by the Messiah” under the Clacton MP.
Asked whether he thought the former UKIP leader had the potential to become prime minister, as his supporters have suggested, Mr Lowe said: “It’s too early to know whether Nigel will deliver the goods. He can only deliver if he surrounds himself with the right people.”
Read More:
The Reform row: What has happened and what has been said?
He also claimed that he was “barely six months into being an MP” himself and “in the betting to be the next prime minister”.
War of words escalates
Those words could have struck a nerve with Mr Farage after Elon Musk, the Tesla and Space X billionaire who has become one of Donald Trump’s closest allies, suggested the Reform leader “doesn’t have what it takes” and that Mr Lowe should take over.
The pair launched bitter personal attacks on each other in articles for the Sunday Telegraph, with Mr Farage accusing Mr Lowe of falling out with all his fellow Reform MPs due to “outbursts” and “inappropriate” language.
He also quoted Labour minister Mike Kane, who said after a confrontation with Mr Lowe in the Commons that his anger “showed a man not in charge of his own faculties”.
In his article, Mr Lowe repeated his claim there is no credible evidence against him, said he was the victim of a “witch hunt” and the Reform UK leadership was unable even to accept the most mild constructive criticism.
US lawmakers are set for a heated debate on stablecoin regulation, with key industry leaders expected to outline their vision for the future of digital asset oversight.
Charles Cascarilla, co-founder and CEO of stablecoin issuer Paxos, is scheduled to testify before the House Financial Services Committee, where he will urge lawmakers to establish “cross-jurisdictional reciprocity” in stablecoin regulations.
In his prepared testimony, Cascarilla flagged concerns about the existing hurdles in the adoption of Paxos’ Global Dollar (USDG) stablecoin due to it being issued via a regulated affiliate in Singapore.
“We fear that products like Paxos’ Global Dollar (USDG) stablecoin, issued by a regulated affiliate in Singapore, will languish while departments and agencies make their determinations,” Cascarilla wrote in his speech.
US must act to prevent regulatory stablecoin arbitrage
Cascarilla recommended US lawmakers strengthen the current “international reciprocity language” to include clearly defined, accelerated timelines for the US Treasury Department to designate overseas jurisdictions for stablecoin regulation.
“This timeframe would force swift action and prevent bureaucratic delays while guaranteeing thorough scrutiny of foreign regulatory regimes,” the executive said.
Cascarilla emphasized that potential delays in applying such action would be a major hurdle in the adoption and distribution of stablecoins like USDG in the US as well as cross-border operations.
“Reciprocity is not about lowering standards — it’s about raising them globally,” Cascarilla said, adding:
“By establishing a framework to recognize jurisdictions with comparable regulatory regimes — covering reserve requirements, AML measures and cybersecurity protocols — the United States can prevent regulatory arbitrage, where issuers exploit lax oversight abroad.”
Paxos stablecoins were deemed non-compliant in the EU
Cascarilla’s remarks come amid some Paxos-issued stablecoins facing compliance issues in the European Union following the enforcement of its crypto regulation framework, Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA).
Since the MiCA framework went into full force in December 2024, multiple crypto asset service providers in the EU — including Crypto.com and Coinbase — have announced the delistings of Paxos stablecoins, including Pax Dollar (PAX) and Pax Gold (PAXG).
While Paxos’ Cascarilla is now calling for the US to take urgent action in forcing a global framework for stablecoin issuers that are regulated outside of the US, some industry CEOs have urged all stablecoin firms to get regulated domestically instead.
In February, Circle co-founder Jeremy Allaire argued that all dollar-based stablecoin issuers should register in the US, citing consumer protection and fair competition in the crypto market. He stated:
“Whether you are an offshore company or based in Hong Kong, if you want to offer your US dollar stablecoin in the US, you should register in the US just like we have to go register everywhere else.”
Issued and regulated in the US, Circle’s USDC (USDC) stablecoin was officially approved as the first MiCA-compliant stablecoin in 2024.
Magazine: How crypto laws are changing across the world in 2025
The X account of Meteora co-founder Ben Chow was reported to have been hacked after it posted a tweet reigniting the controversy around the launch of the Libra (LIBRA), Melania Meme (MELANIA) and Official Trump (TRUMP) memecoin tokens that ultimately led to his resignation.
On March 11, Chow’s X account posted an “official statement” about his departure from Meteora. The post called out DefiTuna founders Vlad Pozniakov and Dhirk, claiming the duo’s sole intention was to extract the maximum funds possible from various memecoin token launches, including MELANIA, Mates (MATES) and a Raydium launch.
“As a long time Solana builder, the reason I stepped down is because I am far too trusting for how parasitic the memecoin space is.”
Source: Ben Chow (Deleted post)
The controversial memecoin plot thickens for Meteora
However, Meteora’s official X account flagged the post as fraudulent, claiming that Chow’s X account was compromised and urged users to refrain from clicking on any links.
Chow did not respond to Cointelegraph’s request for comment. The fraudulent tweet has since been deleted after the account was recovered by Meteora.
Chow’s message contained alleged screenshots of WhatsApp conversations between Kelsier Ventures CEO Hayden Davis, Kelsier Ventures’ chief operating officer Gideon Davis, and Pozniakov discussing the MATES token, where one was quoted saying: “Yeah fellas tbh we are trying to max extract on this one.”
The legitimacy of the conversations could not be verified.
Source: Meteora
Meteora co-founder Zen, who has since taken up the role of CEO, said that Meteora’s X account was also compromised along with Chow’s:
“It’s true that someone gained access momentarily to our Meteora X account. We’ve since reset the account and now verifying.”
Investors were advised against clicking on any links shared from the accounts to avert financial losses.
Related: Milei’s ‘Libragate’ scandal, explained: What’s behind the controversy?
Implications of memecoin speculation in Argentine politics
Argentine President Javier Milei is facing calls for impeachment after endorsing a Solana-native LIBRA token. Milei’s endorsement caused the token’s value to surge from near zero to $5, briefly reaching a $4 billion market capitalization.
However, a massive sell-off event followed that caused LIBRA’s value to drop rapidly, wiping out millions in investor funds in the process.
Milei dismissed rug pull allegations, claiming that he regularly promotes business projects as part of his free-market philosophy. His endorsement of the KIP Protocol, the developers behind LIBRA, was a part of the broader policy.
Magazine: Mystery celeb memecoin scam factory, HK firm dumps Bitcoin: Asia Express
-
Sports2 years ago‘Storybook stuff’: Inside the night Bryce Harper sent the Phillies to the World Series
-
Sports11 months agoStory injured on diving stop, exits Red Sox game
-
Sports1 year agoGame 1 of WS least-watched in recorded history
-
Sports2 years agoMLB Rank 2023: Ranking baseball’s top 100 players
-
Sports3 years ago
Team Europe easily wins 4th straight Laver Cup
-
Environment2 years agoJapan and South Korea have a lot at stake in a free and open South China Sea
-
Environment2 years agoGame-changing Lectric XPedition launched as affordable electric cargo bike
-
Business2 years agoBank of England’s extraordinary response to government policy is almost unthinkable | Ed Conway