The Edition: Britain's billionaire exodus, Michael Gove interviews Shabana Mahmood & Hampstead's 'terf war'

May 15, 2025

Guest

Shabana Mahmood

In this discussion, private wealth expert James Quarmby reveals how tax changes are driving the super-rich out of Britain while raising concerns about economic dependency on high earners. Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood talks candidly about pressing issues including grooming gangs and AI, offering an introspective look at her duties. Zoe Strimpel dives into the heated debate over trans women's access to Hampstead's ladies pond, highlighting the divide among local women. Together, these guests tackle pressing social themes with expert insights.

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INSIGHT

Non-Dom Tax Changes Cause Exodus

Abolishing the non-dom tax regime accelerated British millionaires leaving the country.
Tax treatment changes increasingly make the UK unattractive for wealthy individuals to live and invest in.

INSIGHT

Inheritance Tax Deters Wealthy Non-Doms

Inheritance tax is a major deterrent for wealthy non-doms, many unfamiliar with wealth/death taxes.
This 40% tax on total capital, including assets earned pre-UK, is rare and severely discourages residence in the UK.

INSIGHT

UK Tax Reliance on Ultra-Wealthy

The UK is dangerously dependent on its top earners who pay a significant share of income tax.
Losing even a few ultra-wealthy taxpayers creates a big hole in government revenue and affects everyone.

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The great escape: why the rich are fleeing Britain

Keir Starmer worries about who is coming into Britain but, our economics editor Michael Simmons writes in the magazine this week, he should have ‘sleepless nights’ thinking about those leaving. Since 2016, nearly 30,000 millionaires have left – ‘an outflow unmatched in the developed world’.

Tax changes have made Britain a ‘hostile environment’ for the wealthy, yet we are ‘dangerously dependent’ on our highest earners: the top 0.01 per cent pay 6 per cent of all income tax. If the exodus is ‘half as bad’ as those he has spoken to think, Simmons warns, a 2p hike to income tax looms.

Michael joined the podcast to discuss further, alongside private wealth specialist James Quarmby from advisory firm Stephenson Harwood. (1:04)

Next: Michael Gove interviews justice secretary Shabana Mahmood

‘There’s a moment of reckoning to come’ Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood tells The Spectator’s editor Michael Gove in a wide-ranging interview in the magazine this week. Gove writes that he has a degree of sympathy for her, given he occupied her post for 15 months several years ago; ‘it’s the most glamorous and least attractive job in the cabinet’ he writes.

The interview touched on grooming gangs, AI and the oath she swore on the Quran. You can hear an extract from the interview on the podcast but, for the full interview, go to Spectator TV (16:08)

And finally: ‘pond terfs’ versus the ‘right on’

Zoe Strimpel highlights a schism that has emerged over Hampstead ladies pond in the magazine this week: whether trans women should be allowed to swim in the ladies pond. The division, between older ‘pond terfs’, who are against their inclusion, and younger ‘right on’ women, has only widened following the Supreme Court ruling. Far from solving the issue, the fight has only intensified.

Zoe joined the podcast alongside Julie Bindel to discuss further. (27:48)

Hosted by Lara Prendergast and Gus Carter.

Produced by Oscar Edmondson and Patrick Gibbons.