Britain's property tax burden is now the heaviest of any major economy

"Britain's reliance on bricks-and-mortar levies has reached a level unmatched anywhere else in the developed world, leaving businesses shouldering a disproportionate share of the burden and the Exchequer dangerously exposed to any wobble in commercial property values."

"The United Kingdom now extracts more from property taxes than any other major economy, with receipts equivalent to 3.7 per cent of the entire economy, according to the annual business rates review published by tax firm Ryan. The figure is well clear of France and Canada, both on 3.4 per cent, with Belgium and Luxembourg trailing on 3.3 per cent, a gap that underlines just how exposed the British system has become to a downturn in commercial real estate."

"Taken together, business rates, council tax and transaction levies such as stamp duty are now generating around $136 billion (£108 billion) a year for the Treasury, more than France, Japan or Canada raise, and second only to the United States, where total receipts are nearly seven times larger at $855 billion. The OECD's most recent Revenue Statistics confirm Britain's outlier status among advanced economies."

"Just under 11 per cent of every pound the Government raises in tax now comes from property - the third highest share among advanced economies, behind only South Korea on 11.8 per cent and the United States on 11.4 per cent. That level of dependence, analysts argue, has begun to crowd out investment in precisely the kind of physical, capital-intensive businesses ministers say they want to attract."

Britain’s tax system draws an unusually large share of revenue from property-related levies. Business rates receipts equal 3.7% of the entire economy, higher than France and Canada at 3.4% and higher than Belgium and Luxembourg at 3.3%. Combined property taxes, including business rates, council tax, and transaction levies such as stamp duty, generate about $136 billion (£108 billion) annually for the Treasury, exceeding what France, Japan, or Canada raise and second only to the United States. Property accounts for just under 11% of every pound the government raises in tax. This dependence can crowd out investment in capital-intensive businesses, and rising receipts reflect inflation, the end of pandemic-era reliefs, and policy changes.

Read at Business Matters