Business relief is now being used by the majority of wealth managers and financial advisers as an inheritance tax (IHT) planning tool for clients, according to new research.

After the excitement of the past week, with politicians throwing themselves on the funeral pyre of insanity, it’s time to turn to more mundane, but important, matters. Yes, I’m talking about Inheritance Tax, or IHT as the professionals call it.

Financial advisers and industry experts have expressed concern about the ‘stealth tax’ threat from Inheritance Tax after receipts grew to £3.5bn for the latest six month period, up £400m year on year.

Inheritance tax (IHT) receipts for April to August rose 12% year on year to £2.9bn, according to new data this morning from HMRC.