England’s ‘tax-dodging’ hotspots revealed
Home Counties dominate list of towns with highest levels of tax avoidance
The stockbroker belt of southern England is “littered with tax-avoidance hotspots”, according to a new analysis of HMRC data.
Windsor was “named as the tax-dodging capital of England”, says The Telegraph, with St Albans and Guildford close behind.
“The Home Counties is home to many high-net-worth individuals and well-paid city commuters,” said Sean Glancy, a partner at accountancy firm UHY Hacker Young, which analysed figures gained through freedom of information (FOI) requests.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
“These are the groups most likely to have the highest income tax bills, leading to greater incentives to find ways to reduce payments.”
The league table reveals which towns and cities have the highest concentration of tax-avoidance “disclosures” - declarations made by taxpayers using legal avoidance schemes.
“HMRC can investigate these schemes and their providers and, as a result, may amend legislation where deemed necessary to reduce tax avoidance options that can circumvent the law,” explains Investopedia.
If a scheme is subsequently deemed illegal, participants who have not made a declaration face higher penalties.
The top 20 tax-dodging areas
1. Windsor and Maidenhead: 23 disclosures per 100,0002. St Albans: 203. Guildford: 174. London: 175. Aberdeen: 156. Redhill: 157. Tunbridge Wells: 158. Reading: 149. Cambridge: 1310. Hemel Hempstead: 1211. Exeter: 1212. Oxford: 1113. Chelmsford: 1014. Bournemouth: 1015. Bath: 916. Brighton: 917. Canterbury: 918. Stevenage: 919. York: 920. Swindon: 8
Aberdeen, one of the few cities on the list that are outside the stockbroker belt, is at the heart of the North Sea oil industry.
At the end of last year, Aberdeen-based regional newspaper The Press and Journal reported that “northeast oil and gas workers face a 25% loss of earnings” as a result of new anti-tax-avoidance laws targeting highly paid contractors.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Holden Frith is The Week’s digital director. He also makes regular appearances on “The Week Unwrapped”, speaking about subjects as diverse as vaccine development and bionic bomb-sniffing locusts. He joined The Week in 2013, spending five years editing the magazine’s website. Before that, he was deputy digital editor at The Sunday Times. He has also been TheTimes.co.uk’s technology editor and the launch editor of Wired magazine’s UK website. Holden has worked in journalism for nearly two decades, having started his professional career while completing an English literature degree at Cambridge University. He followed that with a master’s degree in journalism from Northwestern University in Chicago. A keen photographer, he also writes travel features whenever he gets the chance.
-
Will Aukus pact survive a second Trump presidency?
Today's Big Question US, UK and Australia seek to expand 'game-changer' defence partnership ahead of Republican's possible return to White House
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
It's the economy, Sunak: has 'Rishession' halted Tory fightback?
Today's Big Question PM's pledge to deliver economic growth is 'in tatters' as stagnation and falling living standards threaten Tory election wipeout
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
'A ridiculous amount of money pledged to someone who already was absurdly rich'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Harold Maass, The Week US Published
-
Why your local council may be going bust
The Explainer Across England, local councils are suffering from grave financial problems
By The Week UK Published
-
Rishi Sunak and the right-wing press: heading for divorce?
Talking Point The Telegraph launches 'assault' on PM just as many Tory MPs are contemplating losing their seats
By Keumars Afifi-Sabet, The Week UK Published
-
'Mixing new technology and new laws is always a fraught business'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Harold Maass, The Week US Published
-
How would a second Trump presidency affect Britain?
Today's Big Question Re-election of Republican frontrunner could threaten UK security, warns former head of secret service
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Bipartisan group pitches Child Tax Credit expansion
Speed Read Congressional negotiators have unveiled their nearly $80 billion tax plan — now they have to pass it.
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published