London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Friday, Aug 22, 2025

Middle-income earners ‘to be hit hardest’ by national insurance rise

Middle-income earners ‘to be hit hardest’ by national insurance rise

Workers on £30,000 to £50,000 will pay higher percentage of salary than those on £100,000, figures reveal
Earners of £100,000 a year could end up paying proportionately less in national insurance than those on middle incomes if a planned increase goes through in April, it has emerged.

Figures produced by the Tax Calculator UK website show those earning £100,000 a year will pay just 7% of their overall salary in national insurance contributions (NICs) – the same proportion of their income as someone on £20,000 a year.

The prime minister and the Treasury have come under intense pressure to scrap or at least postpone the £12bn increase in NICs – introduced to cover the shortfall in social care funding – as the cost of living crisis continues to escalate.

While the Treasury has repeatedly claimed the increase is “progressive”, figures published on Friday by the online tax calculator show that workers earning between £30,000 and £50,000 will be the hardest hit by far.

It calculates that someone earning £50,000 a year will pay £5,086 a year in NICs alone after April – a £505 increase – amounting to 10% of their gross salary.

While someone earning £100,000 a year is set to pay the highest national insurance bill – £7,008 a year (an increase of £1,130), the proportion of their pre-tax income paid in NICs will be just 7%. Those on £30,000 a year will pay 9% of their gross salary in NICs.

“The increase in national insurance will have a huge effect on workers’ earnings in 2022, especially given soaring energy bills and the fact that inflation is at its highest point in 30 years,” said a spokesperson from Tax Calculator UK.

“This data gives us a compelling insight into the fact that lower and average earners will be significantly more squeezed by the NICs hike than those at the very top.

“People earning some of the highest salaries in the country are set to pay the same percentage of their salary as a person on £20,000, despite earning five times as much.”

From April, NICs are set to be charged at 13.25% on most earnings up to £50,000 but at just 3.25% on income above that threshold.

The figures will be seized upon by Labour, which has called for a fairer, more progressive way to fund social care. The shadow chancellor, Rachel Reeves, told the BBC on Friday morning that this was the “wrong tax at the wrong time” and described it as a tax on “ordinary working people and on jobs”.

The increase in NICs was announced by the chancellor, Rishi Sunak, in last autumn’s budget and will hit wage packets on 6 April, at the same time as a four-year freeze on income tax thresholds.

The combination will leave the average household £600 a year worse off in 2022-23, the equivalent of 1.4% of their disposable income, according to the Resolution Foundation thinktank.

Business groups are also furious at rising bills for employers. On Friday the Institute of Directors joined calls from other business leaders to scrap the tax rise.

A Treasury spokesperson said: “It is not true to say that high earners are least affected by the health and social care levy. Everyone with earnings above the primary threshold will pay a flat 1.25% on their income.

“Over half the revenue from the health and social care levy will come from the wealthiest 15% of the population, while over 6 million people on lower incomes will be completely exempt.”
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Ukraine Declares De Facto War on Hungary and Slovakia with Terror Drone Strikes on Their Gas Lifeline
Animated K-pop Musical ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ Becomes Netflix’s Most-Watched Original Animated Film
New York Appeals Court Voids Nearly $500 Million Civil Fraud Penalty Against Trump While Upholding Fraud Liability
Elon Musk tweeted, “Europe is dying”
Far-Right Activist Convicted of Incitement Changes Gender and Demands: "Send Me to a Women’s Prison" | The Storm in Germany
Hungary Criticizes Ukraine: "Violating Our Sovereignty"
Will this be the first country to return to negative interest rates?
Child-free hotels spark controversy
North Korea is where this 95-year-old wants to die. South Korea won’t let him go. Is this our ally or a human rights enemy?
Hong Kong Launches Regulatory Regime and Trials for HKD-Backed Stablecoins
China rehearses September 3 Victory Day parade as imagery points to ‘loyal wingman’ FH-97 family presence
Trump Called Viktor Orbán: "Why Are You Using the Veto"
Horror in the Skies: Plane Engine Exploded, Passengers Sent Farewell Messages
MSNBC Rebrands as MS NOW Amid Comcast’s Cable Spin-Off
AI in Policing: Draft One Helps Speed Up Reports but Raises Legal and Ethical Concerns
Shame in Norway: Crown Princess’s Son Accused of Four Rapes
Apple Begins Simultaneous iPhone 17 Production in India and China
A Robot to Give Birth: The Chinese Announcement That Shakes the World
Finnish MP Dies by Suicide in Parliament Building
Outrage in the Tennis World After Jannik Sinner’s Withdrawal Storm
William and Kate Are Moving House – and the New Neighbors Were Evicted
Class Action Lawsuit Against Volkswagen: Steering Wheel Switches Cause Accidents
Taylor Swift on the Way to the Super Bowl? All the Clues Stirring Up Fans
Dogfights in the Skies: Airbus on Track to Overtake Boeing and Claim Aviation Supremacy
Tim Cook Promises an AI Revolution at Apple: "One of the Most Significant Technologies of Our Generation"
Apple Expands Social Media Presence in China With RedNote Account Ahead of iPhone 17 Launch
Are AI Data Centres the Infrastructure of the Future or the Next Crisis?
Cambridge Dictionary Adds 'Skibidi,' 'Delulu,' and 'Tradwife' Amid Surge of Online Slang
Bill Barr Testifies No Evidence Implicated Trump in Epstein Case; DOJ Set to Release Records
Zelenskyy Returns to White House Flanked by European Allies as Trump Pressures Land-Swap Deal with Putin
The CEO Who Replaced 80% of Employees for the AI Revolution: "I Would Do It Again"
Emails Worth Billions: How Airlines Generate Huge Profits
Character.ai Bets on Future of AI Companionship
China Ramps Up Tax Crackdown on Overseas Investments
Japanese Office Furniture Maker Expands into Bomb Shelter Market
Intel Shares Surge on Possible U.S. Government Investment
Hurricane Erin Threatens U.S. East Coast with Dangerous Surf
EU Blocks Trade Statement Over Digital Rule Dispute
EU Sends Record Aid as Spain Battles Wildfires
JPMorgan Plans New Canary Wharf Tower
Zelenskyy and his allies say they will press Trump on security guarantees
Beijing is moving into gold and other assets, diversifying away from the dollar
Escalating Clashes in Serbia as Anti-Government Protests Spread Nationwide
The Drought in Britain and the Strange Request from the Government to Delete Old Emails
Category 5 Hurricane in the Caribbean: 'Catastrophic Storm' with Winds of 255 km/h
"No, Thanks": The Mathematical Genius Who Turned Down 1.5 Billion Dollars from Zuckerberg
The surprising hero, the ugly incident, and the criticism despite victory: "Liverpool’s defense exposed in full"
Digital Humans Move Beyond Sci-Fi: From Virtual DJs to AI Customer Agents
YouTube will start using AI to guess your age. If it’s wrong, you’ll have to prove it
Jellyfish Swarm Triggers Shutdown at Gravelines Nuclear Power Station in Northern France
×