Is London really the most-taxed city? Banks accused of cherrypicking data

Lobby group’s figures, shared with John Healey, are misleading as they do not include major rival Paris, say campaigners

A banking lobby group has been accused of cherrypicking data and trying to mislead the British government by claiming a tax rise for banks at next week’s budget would leave London less competitive than rival financial hubs.

UK Finance, which represents banks including Lloyds, JP Morgan and Revolut, commissions an annual report tallying up all the taxes shouldered by a large bank, including corporation tax, social security, VAT and bank-specific levies.