Chancellor Jeremy Hunt announced last November that he would freeze the nil-rate band threshold for inheritance tax (IHT) at £325,000 until April 2028.

It is now being widely reported that HMRC estimates that nearly 50,000 additional families will fall within the IHT net in the seven years to 2028 - nearly four times more than originally estimated.

Perhaps the figures are unsurprising, given the persistently high rates of inflation. However, even a married couple who both have a full nil-rate band and residence nil-rate band available will start to pay IHT if their estate is over £1m. With the housing market still strong, this figure is much more widely attainable than when it was first set back in April 2009.

There are, for the time being at least, a number of reliefs and exemptions from IHT which can be used to mitigate a future IHT burden. Despite the uncertainty generated by recent rumours around the possible promise to abolish IHT if the Conservatives win the next general election, it has never been more important to undertake proper estate planning.