Middle-class households could be targeted by Rachel Reeves in her Autumn Budget, it is warned. The Labour Party Chancellor could target middle-class UK households in November as she delivers her Autumn Statement.

One think tank has argued that broadening the tax burden across average earners would represent the “least economically damaging” approach. The Institute for Government suggested that attempting to generate significant revenue exclusively from the wealthiest citizens would prove “difficult and risky”.

The Institute for Government, which receives funding from Lord Sainsbury’s Gatsby Foundation, stated that tax increases should “fall on those with average incomes”.

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Tom Pope, the organisation’s deputy chief economist, said: “This autumn, the Chancellor finds herself in a difficult position.

“With tax rises all but inevitable, she should reject the path of least resistance, often taken by her predecessors, of raising taxes in an inconsistent way based on what seems easiest.”

A Treasury spokesman said: “We are protecting payslips for working people by keeping our promise to not raise the basic, higher or additional rates of income tax, employee National Insurance or VAT.”

It comes as the the influential Resolution Foundation thinktank called on the chancellor to “level the playing field” on how different forms of income are taxed.

The organisation urged Reeves to consider a sweeping package of measures to reshape the tax system.

It said an additional £6bn a year could be raised through a policy to cut employee national insurance by 2p, with a corresponding increase for all income tax bands.

Ms Reeves has so far been tight-lipped over the potential for tax increases, preferring to focus on the government’s mission to drive up economic growth to help swell the Treasury coffers.

A Treasury spokesperson said: “We are not going to speculate on the OBR’s forecast. We are committed to keeping taxes for working people as low as possible, which is why at the last budget, we protected working people’s payslips and kept our promise not to raise the basic, higher or additional rates of income tax, employee national insurance or VAT.”