Although concerns have been expressed about the tax take to the Exchequer, the Office for National Statistics has revealed that last year, HMRC collected £4.6bn from inheritance tax, compared to £2.69bn in 2010, a 70{06aeb1921e0b802d2bd9c766bc98fb11cc6a46c2b0593ed9c88a0e29cf417a34} increase. In the past 12 months alone, inheritance tax revenues increased by 21{06aeb1921e0b802d2bd9c766bc98fb11cc6a46c2b0593ed9c88a0e29cf417a34} to £4.4bn, compared to just under £3.8bn a year earlier. Commenting on the Treasury’s rising inheritance tax revenues, the Daily Mail quotes Mr Tim Fullerlove, Partner and trusts and tax specialist at law firm Wilsons, as saying: “Inheritance tax was originally intended as a tax on the very wealthy, but it has now become a general tax for a large proportion of the middle classes. With the increasing value of property, it is no longer just the large windfalls of inheritance from estates that are being taxed”.
The Daily Mail also notes that, under a proposed Government scheme, households with estates worth over £2m could be subject to a £20,000 probate fee, instead of the current rate of £215.