Campaigners call on Andy Burnham to ‘end business as usual’ with key tax, voting and media reforms
Compass has released a new report with a set of key asks for Burnham’s government
A group of campaigners has backed a report co-ordinated by progressive campaign group and think tank Compass, calling on Andy Burnham to implement a wealth tax and proportional representation.
The policy paper argues that Burnham’s government “won’t end business as usual” as promised unless it delivers electoral, tax and media reform.
One of the report’s headline proposals, developed with campaign groups including Hacked Off, Tax Justice UK, Make Votes Matter and Unlock Democracy, calls for a yearly 2% tax on wealth above £10 million.
The campaigners argue that the UK has “a rigged economic system”, with wealth taxed at an average rate of 4%, compared to 33% for income.
The report states that a 2% tax on wealth over £10 million would generate £24 billion a year and apply to just 0.03% of the population (22,000 people).
Another tax reform the report calls for is to equalise the Capital Gains Tax and income tax rates.
Currently, people who make money through the sale of assets and investments can pay less tax – 18% or 24% for higher rate taxpayers – which is less than what someone earning the same amount through wages would pay.
The paper also urges Burnham to change the voting system at a national and local level from first-past-the-post to some form of proportional representation.
“A more proportional system of votes would ensure that political power reflects the full spectrum of public opinion rather than a small geographical subset of it,” the report argues.
The report also proposes a £100,000 a year cap on all donors to political parties.
The campaigners also argue that “we can’t live in a society that works” or build a movement “strong enough to counter authoritarian populism” without a better media.
Key demands on media reform set out in the report include mutualising the BBC, so it is publicly-funded and publicly-run.
The report states that “a handful of billionaires and offshore corporations control most of Britain’s press and digital platforms while avoiding UK tax”, and proposes imposing a progressive media-ownership tax on conglomerates and offshore owners.
It also calls for national newspaper titles to be mutualised where their owners do not pay tax in the UK.
Neal Lawson, Director of cross-party campaign group Compass, said: “We won’t end business as usual, as Andy Burnham has demanded, without winning fair votes, fair media and fair taxes. These make up the operating system for our politics. By winning these three demands – all of which Burnham has spoken about – we will have a more level playing field to win on everything else.”
Faiza Shaheen – Executive Director of Tax Justice UK, said: “Our tax system is rigged in favour of the super-rich, enabling them to get richer while ordinary families and public services suffer. But changing tax requires confronting power. To fix tax, we must also liberate our media and democracy from elite capture. Unlocking bold change will require fairer taxes, media reform, and fair votes to make society serve everyone – not just the elite.”
You can read the full report here.
Olivia Barber is a reporter at Left Foot Forward
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