Despite his above average income, Nick, 30, is living a below average life. And it’s only set to worsen thanks to Chancellor Rachel Reeves’s Budget, writes Oliver Dean
The Chancellor’s Budget took aim at Britain’s middle-income earners – the so-called ‘Nick, 30s’. Whilst she stayed true to her manifesto commitment regarding income tax, tax threshold freezes amongst other changes all make ordinary Britons worse off. Many of these people have reached a breaking point – and are looking to escape the UK in search of a better life abroad. It is crucial that the Chancellor recognise the damage she has done, before thousands more taxpayers leave and take their money with them.
For context, it is important to paint a picture of ‘Nick’. Nick is in his early thirties. He earns an above average salary and likely rents a flat in Zone 3 or 4 in London, where he is surrounded by the usual cluster of pubs, brunch spots and overpriced, independent coffee shops. On paper, he appears to be doing well. He is well educated, employed and earning more than most. Yet, despite his above average income, he is living a below average life.
The reason is clear-cut. Nick is being squeezed at every opportunity. Much of his salary is taken through taxes and, as the consumer, he’s bore the brunt of employer NI contribution rises. Furthermore, his rent has skyrocketed, his bills are still on the up and food prices remain at extortionate levels.
The life of Nick is one that no one envies, but one that millions of people live. Yet, the government’s message for someone like Nick is that he should feel grateful to live such a life.
As if Nick’s situation were not bad enough, the Budget has only added to his woes. This is in part due to the maintenance of threshold freezes. Whilst not a direct tax rise, it is a textbook example of a stealth tax that will become more important in the coming years. Research from City AM showcased that some young professionals are set to be hit with marginal tax rates of more than 50 per cent, with some even staring down the barrel of a 57 per cent marginal rate – all whilst earning just slightly above the median wage.
Similarly, as a result of the measures outlined at the Budget, a young professional who earns £60,000 a year and is on a Plan 2 student loan will be paying an extra £2,035 over the next few years – with most of this coming in the form of additional NICs and income tax and the remainder being made up by increases to student loan repayments.
Nicks are leaving the country in droves
This all comes at a time when other groups are being let off the financial hook. Pensioners, for example, were likely delighted at the Chancellor’s announcements. The UK state pension will rise by 4.8 per cent from April 2026, which amounts to roughly £575 a year, with the Chancellor “drawing up a workaround” to prevent state pensioners from paying income tax. Indeed, many are probably having flashbacks to Harold Macmillan’s comments on how “the public have never had it so good” – all whilst oblivious to the plight of the middle-income earners across the country.
But all joking aside, there comes a breaking point for people like Nick. He and his peers can only put up with so much before they pack up and leave the UK altogether. Statistics released by the ONS reveal that a net 110,000 16–34-year-olds left the UK in the year to June – making up two thirds of all Britons who have sought greener pastures abroad. Curious about this trend, I interviewed Rohan, who is 31 and owns a legal recruitment agency for city lawyers in Dubai, having moved there from London.
He painted a very clear, yet bleak, picture. The Nicks of Britain “pay in the most” yet “consume the least amount of the benefits”. When I enquired about his lifestyle changes and overall standard of living, Rohan very happily discussed how both he and other expats he knows rarely feel the need to lock the doors to their houses or cars as crime is so rare – a luxury that could never occur in London. Unsurprisingly, when I asked if he had ever considered returning to the UK, he made it very clear that he has “absolutely no plans to come back to the UK. Ever.”
This raises an important question: how many people need to leave the UK for the Chancellor to face up to the reality of the economic situation?
If Britain continues down this path, the country will lose far more than tax revenue. It will lose the very people it depends upon to generate future growth. Its skilled workers, its innovators and its recent graduates who are hoping to make something of themselves. Despite what some reports suggest, these are not the ultra-wealthy who lounge around on their superyachts. They are ordinary, middle-income Britons who are being punished for doing everything society told them to do.
The message Nick has received from this Budget is painfully clear. He is not the priority. The Chancellor’s decisions signal that the government does not feel the need to support him, or the millions of Britons just like him – the silent majority who keep Britain’s lights on. Reeves took aim at middle-income earners at the Budget, and the country is paying the price as a result. She must change course if she is to convince people to call the UK home.
Oliver Dean is a political commentator with Young Voices UK