The Tories are proposing that the exemption threshold for Inheritance Tax (IHT) should be raised to £1m. They’re doing this despite getting the following advice from Treasury civil servants:

This comes from a leaked Treasury memo courtesy of Richard Murphy’s invaluable blog.

This new exemption wheeze will not, of course, affect 99.9% of voters [see correction]. But it might keep wavering Tories in line, especially in the South East.

And here’s Ben Goldacre on why Inheritance Tax is a good idea.

Correction Government statistics reveal that 97% of all estates in 2011-12 were below the current IHT ceiling. On those figures, the new Tory concession benefits only about 3% of the population. Guess who most of them vote for?