Financial firms’ tax bill hits 8-year high

THE financial-services sector had its biggest tax bill since 2007 last year, and contributed one ninth of all taxes collected, Emily Davies reports.

A total of £66.5bn was paid by banks, credit card firms, insurers and other companies, representing 11pc of government tax receipts for 2014/2015.

The increased tax bill, published in a PwC report for the City of London, is down to rises in corporation tax – up 40.7pc to £7.6bn – and the bank levy, up 22.7pc to £2.7bn.

The biggest portion of taxes paid, however, was in employment taxes, which totalled £30bn and remain relatively stable year on year.

The financial-services sector employs more than 1.1m people in Britain and makes up 3.4pc of the nation’s workforce.