Making the middle classes pay

How much more money than the poorest households should Britain’s top earners be allowed to make? As this table shows, the Government is cutting the gap dramatically – and middle-class families are footing the bill.

In 2004-2005, the top 20% of UK households earned 16 times what the poorest households made. But after taxes were taken and benefits paid, this ratio fell to four-to-one. To achieve this redistribution, the Government took nearly 29% off the original income of the average “highest-earning” family, who started with a total household income of £66,332.

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