Kemi Badenoch pledges to abolish inheritance tax on family homes

Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch has announced that her party would abolish inheritance tax on family homes if elected, according to the Guardian and the BBC. The Guardian, the BBC, and Politics Home reported that couples would also be allowed to leave an additional one million pounds tax free to their families under the proposed plan. [1][2][8][9]

The Guardian reported that the proposed tax measures would halve the number of families paying inheritance tax in the United Kingdom. Critics immediately argued that Badenoch is prioritising tax cuts for rich and affluent middle class voters, the Guardian added. The announcement was made during her keynote speech at the Conservative party conference in Birmingham, the Guardian and the Daily Mail reported. [1][2][7]

During her conference speech, Badenoch also attacked Reform UK for openly questioning people's identity, the Daily Mail reported. The Independent and the Guardian reported that Badenoch rejected calls to form a coalition with Nigel Farage's party or unite the right, stating she would rather face another election than do a deal with Reform UK. She also warned Conservative members who defect to Reform UK that they will not be permitted to return, according to the Independent. [1][3][5][7]

The Conservative party previously lost power to the Labour Party in the July 2024 general election. As FTMQ News reported earlier, Badenoch framed her conference strategy around a broader battle of ideas regarding government spending and taxation. [12][15]

The tax proposals form part of a broader conservative platform unveiled at the conference, where the party also proposed cuts to employment taxes for young people and pledged investments in a national air defence network, according to the Daily Mail and earlier FTMQ News reports. [6][15][16]