Budget: The 5 sneaky stealth tax hikes Labour doesn't want you to know about

PM Keir Starmer and Chancellor Rachel Reeves are also lining up a string of stealth taxes, too. In the final part of our four-part Special Report on the Budget, we look at Labour's hidden nasties and how to soften the impact, if you can.

Fuel duty. Ms Reeves could squeeze even more juice out of motorists by hiking fuel duty and even vehicle excise duty.

Fuel duty is a huge earner for the Treasury, worth almost £25billion a year, more than capital gains tax and inheritance tax combined.

In March 2022, the Conservatives introduced a temporary 5p fuel duty cut to help with the cost-of-living crisis. This was extended for a second year and is due to run until March 2025.

Jayne Harrold, tax partner at Evelyn Partners, said Ms Reeves may not extend the temporary cut, claiming the cost-of-living crisis is over, then slap on another 5p. That would increase fuel duty by 10p, with VAT on top.

"A driver filling a 55-litre tank would pay an extra £6.60. This will add up over the year," Ms Harrold said.

She says that could raise £5.5billion a year, going some way to plugging that £22billion "black hole". Some reckon Reeves could add 7p to fuel duty, or 12p in total, lifting the total tax take to £7billion.

Auto Express editor Paul Barker said: "Any hike in motoring tax would break Labour's pre-election promise not to raise taxes on working people."

Air Passenger Duty. There is also talk of raising air passenger duty, ramping up holiday costs especially in long-haul travel.

APD is charged on passengers departing from a UK airport and starts at £7 for domestic economy flights rising to £14 for premium economy and higher grades, and more than £200 for long-haul flights.

Andy Wood, of Tax Natives, said: "The UK already imposes one of the highest APD rates in the world, increasing the overall cost of flying."

He said even a small increase can have a large impact if booking multiple tickets and urged holidaymakers to lock in flights before any hike.

Insurance premium tax. This stealth tax is so sneaky, most taxpayers still don't know about it despite repeated hikes by Tory chancellors.

Insurance premium tax, or IPT, is charged as a supplement on general insurance policies. When introduced in 1994, it was just 2.4%. Today IPT is 12% on household, motor, pet and medical insurance.

It climbs to 20% on travel insurance and on cover sold alongside cars and electrical appliances.

IPT raised more than £8billion for the Treasury in the 2023-24 tax year, up a staggering 280% in a decade.

Neela Chauhan, partner at UHY Hacker Young, called IPT unfair and said most have no idea they're paying it. "Insurance is not a luxury. If you own a car, it is a legal requirement. If you have a mortgage, you need to insure your property."

Worse, insurance premiums have accelerated in recent years, driving up IPT bills, too, Ms Chauhan said.

Brett Hill, at consultancy Broadstone, said hiking IPT on medical insurance could force companies to cut back on private medical insurance for employees. "This will add yet more strain to an already overstretched NHS."

First-time buyer stamp duty relief. The Conservatives temporarily raised the threshold for paying first-time buyer stamp duty to £425,000 in September 2022, but this is set to end in April.

During the election, Labour said it would allow the threshold to fall back to £300,000.

Paula Higgins, of the HomeOwners Alliance, said: "If they do this, first-time buyers will need to act fast to avoid paying more stamp duty."

She said this will make it even harder for young people to get on the property ladder, adding: "We'd rather see stamp duty scrapped altogether."

Employers' national insurance contributions. Ms Reeves now seems likely to increase employers' national insurance contributions.

This is a tempting target because workers won't notice the difference in their pay packets, but ultimately, they will bear the cost.

One option is to add 1% or 2% to today's headline employer rate of 13.8%. Another would see Labour slap NI on employers' pension contributions.

Helen Morrissey, at Hargreaves Lansdown, said either would be a "Halloween horror show".

She said Ms Reeves has repeatedly pledged not to increase taxes on "working people" but they will ultimately foot the bill.

Ms Morrissey added: "Employers may look to mitigate these costs with smaller wage increases or only make the minimum auto-enrolment pension contributions."

In 2021, when the Tories considered something similar, the Office for Budget Responsibility calculated that 80% of the cost would be passed on to workers via lower wages, and 20% to consumers through price hikes."

Raising employers' NI will also be seen as a tax on jobs as it will increase the cost of hiring, said Charlie Barnes, head of employment law at RSM.

But with Starmer and Reeves desperate to raise cash without losing votes, it looks like stealth taxes all the way on October 30.