Bank Lobby Group Accused of Cherry-Picking Tax Data on London
UK Finance faces criticism for omitting Paris from a study claiming London banks bear the heaviest tax burden among global financial hubs.
A prominent banking lobby group is facing accusations of selectively using data to pressure the British government ahead of next week's budget, with campaigners charging that its analysis distorts comparisons between London and rival financial centers.
UK Finance, which counts Lloyds, JP Morgan, and Revolut among its members, commissions an annual report aggregating the full tax burden on a large bank operating in a given city. The tally encompasses corporation tax, social security contributions, VAT, and bank-specific levies — a broad methodology designed to capture the total fiscal cost of doing business.
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Critics say the methodology, while comprehensive, is undercut by a conspicuous omission: Paris, one of London's most direct competitors for European financial business, does not appear in the comparison. Campaigners argue that leaving out such a significant rival makes the study misleading and ill-suited for informing government policy.
The lobby group reportedly shared its findings with Defence Secretary John Healey, framing a potential tax increase in the upcoming budget as a threat to London's competitiveness against other major financial hubs. Opponents contend that selectively choosing which cities to include in the benchmark skews the conclusion in favor of a lighter tax regime for banks.
The episode underscores the recurring tension between the financial industry and policymakers over how tax competitiveness should be measured and who gets to define the terms of that debate. Continue reading at Business | The Guardian.
