NHS and care workers to face £900 million tax bill under National Insurance hike

Nurses, care home staff and other health and social care workers will pay over £900 million more in tax under Boris Johnson’s increase to National Insurance, new research reveals. Analysis by the House of Commons Library commissioned by the Liberal Democrats estimates that those working in health and social care will pay 12% of the £7.4 billion expected to be raised from employees through the tax rise. The estimate also doesn’t include those working in health and social care who are self-employed, meaning the real figure is likely to be even higher. The Liberal Democrats said this showed the government was launching a “tax raid on NHS and care home heroes” who have been on the frontline of the pandemic. The research also shows the expected tax hike that will be faced by those working in the NHS and social care next year due to the 1.25% increase in national insurance. A nurse or midwife on an average salary will see their tax bill rise by £310 next year, care home workers will pay around £140 more and ambulance staff will see a £420 increase. The average NHS worker across all staff groups will pay £315 more a year. The Liberal Democrats are warning that the government’s plans will do nothing to fill the estimated 120,000 vacancies for social care workers, and will actually make them worse by hammering those working in the sector with a tax rise. The party is calling for measures to give care staff the pay and recognition they deserve, as well as an increase to the carer’s allowance to £1,000 a year. Liberal Democrat Health Spokesperson Munira Wilson said: “Boris Johnson’s broken manifesto promise amounts to a £900 million tax raid on our NHS and care home heroes. “These are the nurses, ambulance drivers and care workers who worked day in day out to save lives on the frontline of the pandemic. Now their reward is to be hit with a tax bill worth hundreds of pounds, at a time when incomes are being squeezed by the cost of living crisis. “The Conservatives must rethink this unjust tax hike that will disproportionately impact those on low and middle incomes. Their plans risk worsening the staffing crisis in our care homes instead of fixing it. “The Liberal Democrats will offer a fair deal for our carers, along with an increase to the unpaid carers’ allowance to give them the pay and recognition they deserve.”