After almost a decade of personal allowance increases, the last four years have seen the personal allowance and the higher-rate tax thresholds frozen. This covert revenue-raising method has seen the population of income tax payers in 2024/25 increase by 18% more than in 2020/21, with another five percentage points increase projected by 2028/29. At the same time, the number paying higherrate or additional-rate tax has risen more rapidly – an increase of 69% over the last five years. By 2028/29 the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) estimates that nearly one in four of all income taxpayers will be paying more than basic rate.