Gary Lineker among millionaires asking Andy Burnham to tax them more

The BBC reports that 120 wealthy Britons, including former England footballer Gary Lineker and musician Brian Eno, have signed an open letter organized by the Patriotic Millionaires group asking Prime Minister Andy Burnham to implement higher taxes on the wealthy—specifically a 2% tax on wealth over £10 million. The reporting is rigorous and well-sourced, with direct quotes from signatories (Eno, Curtis, Stevenson, McDermid), Treasury officials (Emma Reynolds), and Opposition response (Kemi Badenoch), alongside context about existing voluntary donation mechanisms and Burnham's non-committal stance on wealth taxation. The Independent, Telegraph, Mirror, and Daily Mail all corroborate the core facts of the letter and signatory list, though the Telegraph frames it as "virtue signalling" and the Mail emphasizes Lineker's £1.3m BBC salary, reflecting editorial tonal choices rather than factual disputes. Watch for the government's response during the next Budget announcement, where Emma Reynolds indicated major tax policy changes would be detailed, and track whether any of Burnham's earlier openness to "asking for a little more" tax translates into concrete wealth tax proposals.