Dear Mr Murray,

Thank you for your correspondence regarding recent official communications from HM Treasury on changes to National Insurance Contributions (NICs) this year.

You expressed concern about posts by @HMTreasury on X that referred to the average employee on a £35,400 salary saving £450 a year from the cut to NICs taking effect on 6 January. Taking the posts together, the Treasury was reasonably clear and transparent that they referred specifically to the impact of the NICs change taking effect on the day of the posts and not to the wider range of personal tax changes taking effect this year that were referred to by the Institute for Fiscal Studies and others.

You also expressed concern about a Treasury post on X that claimed:

“After today’s NICs changes, the UK’s tax rate for those on average salaries is lower than all G7 nations based on the latest @OECD data.”

Under the principles of intelligent transparency, it should have been made clear that this referred specifically to single workers with no children and not to other family types for whom this is not the case.

The Office for Statistics Regulation will continue to work with HM Treasury to ensure future communications are clear and comply with the principles of intelligent transparency.

Yours sincerely,

Sir Robert Chote
Chair

 

Related links

James Murray MP to Sir Robert Chote – Communications on National Insurance Contributions