UCL Political Science Events

Implications Of A Wealth Tax In The UK

Episode Summary

Recorded in March 2026, this Policy and Practice Seminar explores the economic and political debate around wealth taxation as a potential response to rising inequality, cost-of-living pressures, and strained public services. It examines whether a wealth tax could provide a fairer redistribution of resources, while also considering concerns about capital flight, administrative feasibility, and the limitations of one-off tax measures. The discussion brings together experts in inequality, tax policy, and political economy to assess the practical and ethical dimensions of reforming wealth taxation in the UK. Speakers include Will Snell, Liz Mann, Andy Summers, with chair Lucy Barnes.

Episode Notes

In an era of rising inequality, cost-of-living crises, and weakened public services, a wealth tax could be a potential solution to collect revenue and redistribute resources. However, implementing a wealth tax can have potentially adverse consequences by prompting capital flight, and may also be unsustainable if implemented as a one-off policy. 

Our panel of experts will examine some of the key issues around economic inequality in the UK and the implications of a wealth tax as a potential solution. 

Meet the speakers

• Will Snell is Chief Executive of the Fairness Foundation. He is a non-profit entrepreneur with experience across a range of sectors, both in the UK and overseas, who is now focused on UK public policy related to inequality. Snell was elected as a Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences in October 2023. 
• Dr Liz Mann is Lecturer of Social Policy at the School of Applied Social Studies, University College Cork, and Visiting Fellow in the Department of Social Policy, at the London School of Economics and Political Science. Liz’s research centres on wealth inequality, the gendered allocation of wealth, and the organisation of wealth within couples in the UK. Her research focus leads to an active interest in the taxation of wealth, including associated allowances, reliefs and exemptions, and their potential for gendered effects. 
• Dr Andy Summers is an Associate Professor of Law at the LSE Law School, and the Director of the Centre for Analysis of Taxation (CenTax), a research centre dedicated to improving public understanding of tax and helping to design a better tax system, through research that is academically rigorous and relevant to policymakers and the public. His research focuses on the evaluation and design of tax policies, particularly those affecting top earners and High Net Wealth Individuals (HNWIs). 
• Chair: Prof Lucy Barnes is a Professor of Political Economy in the UCL Department of Political Science. Her recent work centres on the politics of progressive taxation, public opinion on austerity and fiscal policy, and how the economy is experienced and understood by voters and politicians. 

Recorded 29 March 2026