Promotion would really pay because we would keep more of our money
FOR parents Hayley and Philip Stainton, the change to the higher-rate income tax threshold could not come at a better time.
Both Hayley, 31, a university lecturer, and Philip, 3 , a secondary school teacher, currently earn healthy salaries that fall just below the 40 per cent tax threshold.
Recently, however, Philip has been looking to move jobs and get a promotion, which would boost his salary and possibly push him into the higher tax bracket.
Raising the higher-tax threshold has reassured the married couple, parents of 19-month-old Isla, that they will not be hit with a swingeing tax bill just as their household bills are about to rise.
Hayley is pregnant with their second child, so any extra earned income they keep away from the taxman will help cover the costs of a growing family.
Hayley said: ‘Although I am at the top of my pay bracket for my job, the change to thresholds will help Philip because he is looking for promotions, so he could stay below the higher tax bracket. It will be good for us.’
But the couple, who bought their current four-bedroom house in Bracknell two years ago with the Help to Buy scheme, fear Mr Hammond’s plans to scrap the scheme for people who are not first-time buyers by 2023 does not make sense.
Hayley said: ‘That’s what we were hoping to do. When we move out of this house we planned to go down the Help to Buy route.
‘A lot of new-builds are bigger houses so first-time buyers aren’t going to be able to afford them anyway. I don’t think it’s a very good idea.’