Sunday Times Rich List: Wren Kitchens founder move to US 'part of exodus of wealthy' after Rachel Reeves' tax rises
Wren Kitchens founder Malcolm Healey is among an “exodus” of wealthy people who have recently left the UK, according to the compiler of the Sunday Times Rich List.
Mr Healey, who comes from Hull and owns the vast Warter Priory estate near Pocklington, is reported to have moved to America.
Robert Watts, who compiles the Sunday Times Rich List, told The Yorkshire Post that is part of a “tale of two exoduses” which has seen more than 100 of the 350 people and families that make up the list move out of the country.
“For the first time in the Rich List’s 38 years, we’ve done a residence check on every single person and that’s built up quite a complete picture of where these people now live,” he said.
“Malcolm Healey has recently moved to the United States and that’s very common.
“We’re seeing many people leaving. I think I got to 111 people in the top 350 entries are now not living in the UK. They’re living in Monaco, Switzerland, the Channel Islands, the United States. So he is symptomatic of that exodus.”
Mr Healey, who is now in his 80s, and his late brother Eddie started out in their family’s paint business before setting up Status Discount, a chain of 63 DIY stores which they later sold to MFI.
In 2023 he sold electrical goods retailer Ebuyer.
Mr Watts said: “Malcolm Healey is a fascinating guy for many reasons. He started Wren Kitchens in his 60s at an age where most people would be heading off into retirement.
“He started that business and he’s done extremely well.”
Mr Watts said there are “two sides” to the departure of many wealthy people from the UK.
He said one part of the picture is British entrepreneurs being attracted to move abroad.
“Many of these places are more attractive and that's partly because they are trying to get high net worth individuals from around the world,” he said.
“They recognise that there's a value in having these people there, so they are trying to entice these people with attractive visas, low tax rates and things like that.
“That's a big part of it, but there's no doubt that a significant number of tax changes that have been made over the past two years by the UK Government has encouraged many of these people to leave.”
He said the second issue was the flight of the “global super rich” following Rachel Reeves abolishing ‘non-dom’ status after the idea was first proposed by her predecessor Jeremy Hunt.
Mr Watts said such people previously only paid UK taxes on earnings made in this country, with the changes meaning overseas earnings are now taxed while assets outside of the UK are also taken into account for inheritance tax purposes.
He said the inheritance tax issue has been a particular problem.
He said while the super rich still can and do retain properties in the UK, they are now limited to being in the country for not more than 90 days a year - turning them into effective visitors rather than active contributors to British life.
“For the global super rich, they're coming here not necessarily to start businesses but because of the universities and private schools for their children, for the wealth management in The City, for Wimbledon, Lord’s Cricket Ground, all sorts of reasons.
“But the thing that's making these people go is that axing of that non-dom status.”
He said he believes the Treasury did not understand the implications of the inheritance tax issue for non-doms.
“Everyone thought it was an earnings issue at the time, or the government did at the time, but actually where the killer has been is what happens when these people die.
“Suddenly the whole estate, all their properties in India, America, Africa, Spain, Europe, their businesses and their other assets were suddenly liable for UK inheritance tax at 40 per cent.
“That was one of the key things that wasn’t recognised with the ending of non-dom status.
“The conversations I had with the Treasury at the time, they didn’t seem to think it was the elephant in the room, they thought it was an income issue. Actually these people will pay their income tax on their global earnings.
“But what they can’t afford is seeing when they die, if they are worth £1bn, writing a cheque for £400m for the UK Treasury for an estate they have abroad. A lot of them are quite angry and grumpy about that and I don’t think politicians and policymakers in Westminster saw it as an issue coming up. But without doubt, that’s just been too much for many of them.”
He added: “It is a story of two exoduses, the global super rich going because of this non-dom status but also these British-born entrepreneurs going as well and that’s a slightly different story.”