Tax as a share of the economy hits 33.5%

Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) data shows that taxes as a share of the British economy rose by 1.4 percentage points to 33.5% in 2021. That was the biggest rise among G7 economies apart from Germany, with the increase also exceeding those seen in traditionally high tax countries Sweden, Finland and Denmark. Britain’s tax burden is at its highest since 1988 and the figures do not take into account the tax increases set out in Chancellor Jeremy Hunt’s Autumn Statement. Despite the increase, the UK’s overall tax burden remains lower than those of its European counterparts. France’s tax-to-GDP ratio currently stands at 45.1%, while Italy’s hit 43.3% in 2021. Across all countries measured, the average tax-to-GDP ratio rose by 0.6 percentage points in 2021, hitting 34.1%. This marks the second-steepest year-on-year increase since 1990.

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The Daily Telegraph

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