Understanding today.
Preparing for tomorrow.
Newsletter
Home / Proposals / Prosperity 2030
Tax reform · Think-tank blueprint

Prosperity 2030: the plan to abolish council tax, stamp duty — and income tax

Published by UCL's Institute for Global Prosperity on 9 July 2026 and endorsed by an adviser to the incoming Prime Minister, Prosperity 2030 is the most sweeping tax redesign put in front of British politics in decades: one annual property tax instead of council tax and stamp duty, and one "National Contribution" instead of five taxes on income and wealth.

Status: Think-tank proposal — not party policy Author: UCL Institute for Global Prosperity Timeline: Would start 2030, after the next election From: Report, 9 July 2026

Jump to the calculator

What's proposed

Prosperity 2030 is a five-year programme of structural reform aimed at the cost of living. Its authors are explicit that changes this large need a democratic mandate: nothing would begin until after the public has voted at the next general election (due by 2029), with the programme running from 2030. The two headline moves:

  • Property: abolish council tax and stamp duty, replacing both with a 1% annual tax on current property values — ending what the report calls "the absurdity of a modest terrace paying proportionally more than a high-value mansion". A deferral option would ensure no one is forced to sell to pay it.
  • Income and wealth: abolish income tax, employee and self-employed National Insurance, dividend tax, capital gains tax and inheritance tax, replacing all five with a single progressive "National Contribution" on income from every source. The authors project £52 billion more revenue in year one, rising to £75 billion after five years — from simplification and better collection rather than higher borrowing.

The rest of the programme expands public services and infrastructure spending, funded by those revenues. City AM summarised it as a call for the incoming Burnham government to launch a "£100bn tax reform package".

The case for

  • Council tax is based on 1991 values and capped at Band H; stamp duty punishes moving. One flat percentage of today's value fixes both distortions at once.
  • Merging five overlapping taxes into one removes cliff edges, avoidance seams (dividends vs salary, gains vs income) and a huge compliance burden.
  • It has cross-spectrum endorsements — including Lord O'Neill of Gatley, a former Conservative Treasury minister who now advises Andy Burnham.

The case against

  • 1% is a big number. On a £600,000 home that's £6,000 a year — roughly double the Fairer Share Proportional Property Tax (0.48%) and far above most current council tax bills in the South East. Deferral softens but doesn't remove the sticker shock.
  • Revenue projections are contested. £52–75bn extra from "simplification" assumes behavioural responses go the authors' way; the OBR has never scored anything like it.
  • Transition risk. Replacing the entire personal tax system in one parliament would be the largest fiscal engineering project since PAYE was introduced in 1944.

Where the parties stand

No party has adopted Prosperity 2030. Its property half overlaps with the Proportional Property Tax that Burnham has personally backed — the Conservatives have already dismissed Burnham-linked property tax reform, and Reform UK favours cutting stamp duty within the current system. The Greens' wealth tax shares the "tax wealth like income" instinct via a different route.

Interactive calculator

Your home under three property tax systems

Compare what you pay now with the Proportional Property Tax (0.48%) and the Prosperity 2030 tax (1%).

Simplified comparison, England. Council tax estimated from your band and your council's Band D rate (England average 2026/27 ≈ £2,392), excluding discounts and support schemes. The PPT and Prosperity 2030 figures apply the campaigns' headline rates to your property value; final designs, reliefs and transition rules would differ. Remember both plans also abolish stamp duty — and Prosperity 2030 abolishes income tax and NI too. Not financial advice.

Your home

Sources & further reading

Figures are from public material and may change. Not financial, legal or tax advice.

Frequently asked questions

What is Prosperity 2030?

A structural reform blueprint published by the UCL Institute for Global Prosperity on 9 July 2026. It proposes replacing council tax and stamp duty with a 1% annual property value tax, and merging income tax, employee and self-employed National Insurance, dividend tax, capital gains tax and inheritance tax into a single progressive "National Contribution". Its authors say it should start in 2030, after voters have had their say at the 2029 general election.

Is Prosperity 2030 government policy?

No. It is a think-tank proposal — though a prominent one, endorsed by economists including Lord O'Neill, an adviser to Andy Burnham, who is expected to become Prime Minister in July 2026. No party has adopted it.

How does the 1% property tax compare with the Proportional Property Tax?

Both replace council tax and stamp duty with an annual charge on current property values. The Fairer Share Proportional Property Tax uses 0.48% (0.96% for second and empty homes); Prosperity 2030 proposes 1%, roughly double, but pairs it with abolishing income tax and NI in favour of a single National Contribution. Both include deferral options so no one is forced to sell.

What would happen to income tax under Prosperity 2030?

Income tax, employee and self-employed National Insurance, dividend tax, capital gains tax and inheritance tax would all be abolished and replaced by one progressive "National Contribution" on income from all sources. The authors project it would raise £52 billion more in its first year, rising to £75 billion after five years, through a simpler and more efficient system.