Andy Burnham has been warned to rule out a wealth tax before he even reaches Downing Street, with one of the world’s largest independent financial advisory firms claiming that speculation alone is already driving capital, and the entrepreneurs who deploy it, out of Britain.
The warning from Nigel Green, chief executive of deVere Group, follows an interview in which Burnham, who replaces Sir Keir Starmer as Prime Minister on Monday, declined to rule out a levy on the assets of Britain’s wealthiest citizens. Speaking to Gary Lineker’s podcast, the incoming PM suggested people may eventually be asked for “a little more” and said fairness demanded difficult decisions ahead.
For business owners, the concern is less the tax itself than the uncertainty. “A wealth tax that has not been proposed is already doing damage,” Green said. “Money does not sit around waiting for legislation. It moves the moment a government signals it is willing to go there, and Mr Burnham just signalled it.
“He needs to put this to rest today, not let it hang over Britain for months while capital quietly heads for the door.”
The timing is awkward for a new administration promising stability. The UK lost an estimated 16,500 millionaires in 2025, one of the largest single-year outflows recorded anywhere in the world, and industry forecasts suggest that figure could double again in 2026 as the effects of the abolition of the non-dom regime continue to ripple through. Analysts had already warned that Britain faced the largest exodus of millionaires globally before the leadership change, and more recent research suggests the non-dom exodus is running far worse than forecast, putting billions in expected tax receipts at risk.
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