Burnham risks £4bn bill in Thames Water special administration Politics Andy Burnham’s plans to push Thames Water into special administration could leave the taxpayer to foot a £4bn bill. The incoming Prime Minister is facing a crunch decision over how to deal with the struggling utility and is expected to use a special administration regime (SAR) to keep it running until a buyer is found. [...]
Quantexa chief says £175m HMRC deal will ‘protect taxpayers’ money’ Tax HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has signed a £175m, 10-year partnership with London-based Quantexa to overhaul its data infrastructure, as the tax authority scrambles to recover billions lost to evasion and sophisticated fraud. The deal – one of the largest tech deployments in the public sector – is designed to fix the “fragmented” legacy systems [...]
The Debate: Should cultural landmarks have equal pricing for benefits claimants? Opinion As discounted tickets for those on benefits kicks off a Twitter storm over 'fairness', we hear both sides of the argument in the Debate.
Thousands of taxpayers to miss out on rebate as HMRC still sending cheques April 13, 2026 Thousands of Brits are missing out on collecting their tax rebates after failing to cash in cheques sent to them by HMRC. According to an FOI from the i paper, the department issued 1,746,720 cheques last year, but 178,180 were never cashed. The cheques had a combined value of £144m, meaning taxpayers who failed to [...]
HMRC rejects nearly half of digital tax exemptions March 24, 2026 HMRC has rejected almost half of applications from taxpayers seeking exemption from Making Tax Digital (MTD) for Income Tax. Figures obtained via a Freedom of Information (FoI) request by Saffery show that as of February 2026 more than 1,600 people had applied for exemption on the grounds of “digital exclusion”. Of those, 855 applications were [...]
Betfred brothers, Alex Gerko, Mike Ashley: Top UK taxpayers revealed January 31, 2026 Betting entrepreneurs Peter Done and Denise Coates, traders Alex Gerko and Chris Rokos, and high street kingpins Tim Martin and Mike Ashley are among the top taxpayers in the UK, new analysis has revealed. Betfred founders Fred and Peter Done paid the most cash into HMRC over the past year, according to The Sunday Times’ [...]
Brits earning over £100k worry more about money September 29, 2025 Six figure earners are more likely to worry about money than those on the average UK salary, according to fresh research. Eight in ten Brits who earn over £100,000 are worried about their finanical health, new research from fintech juggernaut Revolut has revealed. This came ahead of those on the national average between £35,001–£45,000 where [...]
Reeves mulls taxpayer-funded subsidy to cut manufacturers’ energy costs June 8, 2025 Rachel Reeves is looking at plans for a £1bn taxpayer-funded annual subsidy to bring down the energy costs for manufacturers after warnings the UK faced “rapid deindustrialisation” without intervention. The Chancellor is facing mounting pressure to lower energy costs for industry with fears high prices are holding back investment opportunities and stifling the country’s competitiveness. [...]
Council pay: Westminster tops ‘town hall rich list’ with 73 staff on over £100k March 31, 2025 Westminster City Council has topped a national ‘town hall rich list’ with 73 staff rewarded with over £100,000 last year. The central London borough council also had the most employees nationwide – at eight – receiving more than £200,000 in total remuneration, in 2023-24, according to the Taxpayers’ Alliance (TPA). While 13 more Westminster staff [...]
DCMS fear rugby future as £30m in taxpayer loans expected to be written off December 18, 2024 The government could be forced to write off nearly £30m of taxpayers’ money loaned to sports bodies, clubs and the arts during the Covid-19 pandemic. The figures, revealed today by the National Audit Office, provide a stark update on the £474m aid package provided by the Department of Culture, Media and Sport. Rugby union was [...]