# Burnham urged to raise taxes on banks in first budget

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/my-advice-for-burnhams-first-budget-hit-the-banks-and-hit-them-hard-polly-toynbee/
- Published: 2026-10-27T06:00:03+00:00
- Updated: 2026-10-27T06:33:00+00:00
- Original publisher: The Guardian (publisher lean: Left)
- Original article: https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2026/oct/27/andy-burnham-budget-banks-billions-prime-minister
- Topics: Business, Elections, Geopolitics, Politics

## Key points

- Burnham is urged to raise taxes on banks.
- The four biggest banks made £13bn in half a year.
- A previous bank levy raised £2.3bn in four months.

## Summary

The article argues that Andy Burnham should use his first budget to raise taxes on banks, which the writer says have not repaid the public for the damage caused by the 2008 financial crash. Burnham’s proposed tax rise would reverse earlier cuts to the bank levy and profits surcharge, while signalling a tougher approach to the influence of the financial sector.

The four biggest UK banks reportedly made £13 billion in profits in the first half of this year, up 16% on the same period last year. The article disputes industry claims that higher taxes would make London uncompetitive and recalls that a 2009 levy on bankers’ bonuses raised an estimated £2.3 billion in four months, with banks paying it. The public bailout cost about £23 billion after asset sales, while estimates of the wider economic damage range from 7.5% of GDP to twice that.

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.