UK MPs Report HMRC Fails Track Billionaires Tax Contributions

A report by the UK Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has sharply criticized HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) for its inability to track how much tax the country's billionaires pay, highlighting a significant lack of data on the wealthiest individuals and their contributions to public finances. Despite the small number of billionaires, HMRC does not know how many pay tax or the total amount contributed, which risks damaging public confidence and complicates efforts to assess whether they pay their fair share. The PAC suggests HMRC could improve its oversight by using artificial intelligence and external sources like The Sunday Times Rich List to better analyze wealth and assets. The report also notes that HMRC's current focus is on taxing income and sales of assets rather than wealth itself, making a wealth tax difficult to implement given the complexities of valuing assets, especially those held offshore. This criticism comes amid growing political and public pressure for wealth taxes in the UK, with discussions intensified by recent government spending decisions and economic challenges. HMRC has been allocated additional funding to enhance compliance efforts, but the PAC insists more must be done to address the 'tax gap' involving the ultra-wealthy.