Gosh, Labour really does hate private landlords. Rachel Reeves’ latest property tax proposal to be dangled before the public is to charge National Insurance contributions (NICs) on income from rental properties. This would set it aside from other forms of investment income, which are liable for income tax but not NICs. It would also represent a growing war against small-time private landlords as opposed to corporate ones. Companies letting properties would not be affected by the change and neither would private landlords with substantial salaries be hit badly – there is a ceiling on the main rate of NICs, with income over £50,000 a year taxed at only 2 per cent above that level.

Rachel Reeves has no ideas other than dreaming up ways of extracting more of our money

The proposal thus targe

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