It doesn’t seem that long ago that we were kicking off 2024 and here we are thinking about Christmas. Although we say the same thing every time, the years really do seem to be going by faster than ever and this is especially relevant for our Estate Planning.
2024 has been a year of huge change in this area. Of course we had the general election a few months back which returned Labour to power after a 14 year hiatus with the largest majority in living memory. Regardless of your overall political affiliations, it is probably fair to say that Labour is fairly hostile when it comes to Inheritance Tax policy.
The changes announced in the budget went further than many expected, especially around pensions and it is clear that planning strategies will need to be reformed over the next couple of years.
We have seen demand for our services skyrocket in the past few months in the lead up to and after the Budget and this seems to show no sign of slowing down. Given the current political environment I think people are now trying to implement new Estate Planning strategies ‘while they still can’. The budget we have just seen will likely be followed by at least 4 more and they could well be back for more before this parliament is over.
Coming back to how fast time flies, this is worth thinking about carefully as we enter 2025. I am sure many of us will have Estate Planning on the list of new year’s resolutions and this is often something which people put off for extended periods of time.
Using gifting as an example, many people put off making gifts because ‘7 years sounds like an awful long time to wait’.
Looking forward, it really can feel like that, however if you cast your mind back 7 years (think about what you were doing, who you were with) it probably doesn’t seem that long ago. I would encourage clients to take advantage of the allowances and reliefs that we still have available while we can – who knows what the Government has planned for us in 2025.
Finally, I would like to place on record my thanks to my incredible team. They have worked tirelessly this year, especially over the past few months around the budget period and we have delivered more estate planning solutions to clients this year than any year beforehand.
Well, that’s 2024 wrapped up then. All that’s left is to wish you and your family a very Merry Christmas and a happy and healthy 2025.
