The top 10% of taxpayers contribute 60% of income tax...

[MsPinkMarshmallow]

I'm fed up of hearing that "high earners" will be targeted by the next budget.

The top 10% of taxpayers pay 60% of income tax.

Don't piss them off. They'll just leave the UK or work less so they're taxed less.

Some more stats: in 2024-25, the top 1% of income tax payers earned 13.3 per cent of total income and paid 28.2 per cent of income tax

35% of adults in the UK pay no tax at all

More from the Taxpayers Alliance here:

https://www.taxpayersalliance.com/briefing_share_of_income_tax_paid_by_percentile

<stands back and awaits kicking>

YABU - the 60% figure is only that high because (a) they have far more income than is necessary for living (b) because of the enormously unequal distribution of wealth there are an inconceivably large number of people who barely have enough for survival and can barely contribute anything because they can barely manage to feed, clothe and shelter their families. The richest 10% should be proud to contributing what they can towards a civilised society, not grumbling about these percentages as if it's better for them to have a few more luxuries while than the most vulnerable in society perish.

And no, I see no problem at all with every role that is paid at more than twice the higher-rate tax band being divided into two 50% FTE roles - yes the individual who might otherwise have been paying a super high tax will actually pay less, but that will double the number of people getting plenty of income to live on, sharing out the wealth more evenly. For every 1000 people currently getting £100k+ who decide to move to 50% FTE, there's another 1000 people currently earning £40k-£45k who can move up the ladder to take one of those £50k roles and another 1000 people currently earning £25k-£40k that move up the ladder to fill those roles, and the whole population becomes more affluent on average while those at the top are still perfectly comfortable and capable of living a nice lifestyle even though they are now only getting 2.5 times the income that is needed for a basic lifetyle rather than 5 times or more (in some cases much, much more).

And if they decide to leave the country altogether, there are plenty of talented and capable people who will take their place. We won't miss them. We would rather have a civilised society - a group of nasty selfish people who want to just accrue all the wealth to themselves and not contribute to the greater whole is not a civilised society and we don't need that kind of people here.

Well Reeves said this morning that she wants to “bring in the brightest and the best”, but no mention of how she will work to RETAIN the brightest and the best she already has here. Take from that what you want! Pretty clear to me where this is going.
I have no problem paying lots of tax on things that are an investment in our future like education and infrastructure and even defence in this climate (although they will probably squander it on the wrong stuff, when we know the future is drones and tech and cyber security).
At the end of the day, unless she makes everyone pay for her investment, including pensioners and welfare cuts, I am going to be cutting back my hours even more. I am only contributing if others do as well. Sick and tired of carrying the burden here as a family.
She has promised the burden is going to be distributed fairly, so let’s see. To me that means fair across the country too. Areas with low employment and high benefits claimants, happy to invest but they need to simultaneously cut benefits there.
The culture of laziness that pervades the whole of the UK needs addressing. You do not get that in most Asian countries. So why do we get it here? The gaming the system, doing the bare minimum, questioning how others owe you and not the other way round. Where does this even come from?

The whole idea of the welfare state and from cradle to crave and “we will look after you”, the whole ethos of the country needs to change. It is rotten to the core.
The question needs to be what can I personally contribute to make my country better and society does not owe me anything. The Government needs to reprogramme everyone’s thinking.

No, neither do I. In that position I'd just work far less.

A) we have more income that is necessary for basic expenses because we've worked for it.

B) it's not our fault that there are poor. There are 24 hours in a day. 7 days a week they can get to work. (Assuming not disabled or having to care)

Us (the richest 10%) want to actually enjoy the fruits of our labour and not be demonised for being successful. We got there through hard work. My DH is the one earning £100k +, why should he be penalised for that? Your tax policy is really stupid.

So it's selfish to want to keep your own wealth, but not selfish to want to steal someone else's?

RR opened her mouth and the footsie took a big tumble this morning. She really needs to learn to keep her big mouth shut.

Indeed.

So it's because of Brexit? Oh but we got £350m a WEEK from that didn't we? It was on the side of a bus! Oh, did we not?

"Why would anyone work for 40 pence out of every pound they earned?"

Bear that in mind when you tell people on UC that they should 'work more'.

If you are talking about marginal taxation, a working person on UC, earning an extra pound gets the following deductions:

£1.00
Pension £0.058
Tax £0.20
NIC £0.08
Net £0.72

UC deductions £0.72 x 0.55 = £0.3641

Total net income £0.36

So a low earner gets a higher rate of deduction than a higher tax earner.

If you're on UC you should feel ashamed to be on UC and should be striving to get off it and be self sufficient

I’m going to bite, even though this thread is pages long and no one will read it.

I’m a high earner. I pay an insane amount of tax. There’s no point me overpaying into my pension because the tapered allowance means I get taxed on most contributions.

I’m not from a wealthy background, but I have always worked extremely hard. I don’t know how long my high salary will continue and I can’t rely on it doing so because often high salaries come with high risk.

I am trying to build wealth and security but being taxed so punitively makes me think “what is the point of working so hard”.

I know that many people do work hard. I do. But I also know that many people have work life balance, don’t answer emails and calls whilst on holiday, and have hobbies. I do not.

I am on call and working 8:30am - 10:45pm Monday-Friday, and on call every weekend. I get home, have dinner, work some more. I work through my holidays and have never not taken my laptop. I don’t put an out of office on. I have dictated work emails for my husband to write whilst I’ve been driving and also in Resus having a miscarriage. I have answered emails whilst in labour. I’m currently on “‘maternity leave” with a ten week old baby. I answered the work messages whilst in labour and immediately after. I have a nanny looking after her two mornings a week so I can keep work going. I haven’t watched a single box set. I haven’t done a single coffee shop trip with my baby.

When not on “maternity” I don’t see friends during the week because I kept having to cancel. And that has been true for ten years whilst I have been trying to build, create, and deliver. I do not have hobbies other than the occasional swim or exercise class.

But what is the point of all of this, taking on personal financial risk, health risks, and taking on the burden of being an employer and trying to do a good job of it, if the benefit is taxed off me so that I am taken down to the level of struggling.

Rather than strip higher earners of their salaries, maybe the government could show a little gratitude to those individuals in business who make immense personal sacrifices and pay for running this country.

Not really the same thing is it? UC isn't their money that they are earning. Receiving less UC isn't the same as paying more tax.

Exactly

"Rather than strip higher earners of their salaries, maybe the government could show a little gratitude to those individuals in business who make immense personal sacrifices and pay for running this country."

Totally agree @onetrickrockingpony

''@Araminta1003 · Today 09:29

The whole idea of the welfare state and from cradle to crave and “we will look after you”, the whole ethos of the country needs to change. It is rotten to the core.
The question needs to be what can I personally contribute to make my country better and society does not owe me anything. The Government needs to reprogramme everyone’s thinking.''

Daft.

''Reprogramme everyone's thinking'': do you think people are mindless robots?

I have ''personally contributed'' income tax, council tax and national insurance for 25 years. If I get too sick to work I fully expect to receive enough money from the state to have my basic needs met.

That's the concept of a social contract.

If you expect people to just pay endless taxes but get no decent healthcare, education, welfare and state pension in return then that contract is broken.

How do you suggest disabled folk or carers do this?

If you expect people to just pay endless taxes but get no decent healthcare, education, welfare and state pension in return then that contract is broken.

But very few pay enough tax for that which is the issue...

Why would you "get too sick to work" barring like a car crash?

Have you considered having a healthy active lifestyle and eating well?

As a human being I hate the state of our society.

Honestly, you are. Please widen your influences.

Another one falling forcthe propaganda. Sigh.

I'd prefer to thank those who are actually doing the graft, but each to their own.

“have ''personally contributed'' income tax, council tax and national insurance for 25 years. If I get too sick to work I fully expect to receive enough money from the state to have my basic needs met.
That's the concept of a social contract.
If you expect people to just pay endless taxes but get no decent healthcare, education, welfare and state pension in return then that contract is broken.”

Have you contributed 18000 per person per year in your household and are still contributing that?
Because if you have not, you have not contributed enough, because that is what the State is now spending per person. It is probably actually more as of January 2026.

In most other countries you pay into an insurance scheme with your own money and that is what you get back. Nobody is blindly underwriting you like they do here. It is not sustainable, not some of the final salary pension schemes, the unlimited health, the unlimited benefits. At some point, it is all going to have to change as much as people cry out.

Depends how disabled. For most jobs all you need is a laptop and internet.

Have you considered having a healthy active lifestyle and eating well?

Which doesn't insulate you from everything...

No, this is the opposite of what a caring society looks like.