The good news is that after the 6 April 2008 the standard rate of tax will go down from 22% to 20% putting more cash in the pockets of most tax payers. The bad news is that the churches and charities that we support will suffer a drop in their income if we do not share with them some of that extra cash by increasing our giving to a figure that maintains the same or a higher figure after they have claimed back the tax.
For example if your Gift Aid giving to charity in the year is £100, after claiming tax by the 5 April 2008 those charities will receive £128. In a full year after the 6 April 2008 the total is reduced to £125. If you wish the charity to receive the earlier total your Gift Aid donations should be increased to £102.60 and because of the decrease in standard rate tax most people will not be out of pocket. If giving is not increased in this way the major charities will suffer reductions in their income of many hundreds of thousand of pounds. Local churches and charities will also notice a significant drop in their income unless their supporters are willing to adjust their giving.
Janet Cornell