‘I am absolutely FUMING!’ SAS veteran blasts ‘imbecilic’ Rachel Reeves as Labour target war heroes with inheritance tax raid
An SAS veteran has hit out at Labour’s decision to hit grieving families of military workers with inheritance tax from April 2027.
The money given to families of deceased Armed Forces members, called death in service payments, may be subject to a hefty cut after Labour MPs voted in favour of a raid.
The lump sum of money will be subject to death duties from 2027 for children or partners of servicemen and women who are not married.
Death in service payments are normally a one-off figure issued to named beneficiaries of a military worker who dies while on duty.
Speaking on GB News, Matthew Hellyer erupted into a furious rant as he spoke to Martin Daubney.
“I am absolutely fuming. As a grieving father, my son died 18 months ago”, he said.
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“I know the pain that these people are going through now. This imbecilic Government are now taxing the very people that have given us our freedom.
“They are ruining us. This applies to the children and widows of soldiers that have been killed on the battlefield.
“They get a final payment. They get the money, a death in service payment. This has always been seen as tax free. Something to lift the spirits and give the soldiers’ families something to look forward to because they don’t have a husband or wife to support them anymore.
“They need this money more than anything. The pain they are going through is immense.
“Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves have no compassion. They’re killing our pensioners, ridiculing our pensioners and persecuting our soldiers.
“Where does it end?”
He added: “This Government is waging war on our military. We have an attorney general that supported the IRA and is refusing to stand down.
“They are after our military, lock stock and two smoking barrels. They’re never giving up. It’s relentless and we’re getting beaten. We have to stand up for our rights.”
The payments will now go into probate if not left to a spouse or civil partner, potentially reducing the compensation by up to 40 per cent in inheritance tax.
Major General Neil Marshall, chief executive of the Forces Pension Society, has written to HMRC urging them to reverse the decision.
In his letter, he warned: “Given the high-risk nature of military service… a policy that discriminates against those who are not married or in a civil partnership poses a serious threat to morale, team cohesion and ultimately operational effectiveness.”
The Treasury has confirmed existing exemptions will continue for active service deaths.
“If a member of the Armed Forces dies from a wound inflicted, accident occurring or disease contracted on active service, they will be exempt,” a Treasury spokesman said.
Military personnel cannot avoid this tax through trusts, as the payments are part of the Armed Forces pension scheme.