Total tax revenues across the UK fell by £33.4bn last year

Total tax revenues across the United Kingdom fell by £33.4 billion last year according to the annual revenue statistical release from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.

The OECD say that the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on tax revenues was less pronounced than during previous crises, in part, due to government support measures introduced to support households and businesses. 

Total revenue from taxes across the UK fell to £692.21 billion during the last financial year for 2020/21 down from £725.61 billion during 2019/20.

The UK ranked 23rd out of the 38 OECD countries in terms of the tax-to-GDP ratio during 2020/21 with a tax-to-GDP ratio of 32.8% compared with the OECD average of 33.5%. The OECD say tax structures in the UK are characterised by higher revenues from taxes on personal income, profits & gains; property taxes; and value-added taxes. 

Analysis from the real estate adviser Altus Group shows an £8.84 billion drop in total tax receipts came from property taxes. 

In the UK, property taxes include all receipts from Council Tax, Business Rates, SDLT (stamp duty land tax) and LBTT (land and building transaction tax) in Scotland.

Altus Group say taxes on property for 2020/21 fell to £81.42 billion in the UK down from £90.26 billion on the previous financial year, with property taxes in the UK accounting for 11.76% of all taxes collected – around £1 in every £8.50. 

Traditionally the UK has had the highest property taxes in the developed world with Altus Group adding that last year Canada, France and Korea all exceeded in UK on the property tax-to-GDP ratio measure.

But Robert Hayton, UK President at Altus Group, warned “whilst the business rates holiday was welcome for occupied retail, leisure and hospitality premises there are tens of thousands of appeals which are being kicked into the long grass forcing businesses to continue to suffer artificially high rates bills going back to 2017”. 

At the 2021 Autumn Budget the Government announced several changes to reduce the burden of business rates by £7 billion over the next 5 years.