Bonuses paid out in the UK financial services sector since the start of the financial crisis in 2007 are likely to top £100bn by the end of this year, according to data from the Robin Hood Tax campaign.
The campaigners analyzed this data from the Office for National Statistics, which revealed that bonuses paid out in the financial sector including insurance have reached £91bn since October 2007.
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This figure is likely to exceed £100bn by the end of the 2014/15 financial year, ONS data said.
Financial justice campaigners said that the figure equates to £1,500 for every man, woman, and child in the UK.
The Robin Hood Tax campaign is requesting the UK to introduce a financial transactions tax that will both raise revenue and curb some of the sector’s worst excesses.
ONS data showed that the UK financial sector paid out £15bn last financial year2013/14, an increase from £13.bn paid out in 2012/13, despite increasing pressure for banks and financial services companies to bring their bonuses under control.
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By GlobalDataThe research indicates that a small number of investment bankers earn more in a year that the vast majority of Britons do in a lifetime.
The financial sector accommodates about a 10th of the UK economy, but accounts for well over a third of all bonuses paid out.
David Hillman, spokesperson for the Robin Hood Tax campaign, said: "This eye-popping sum is evidence we live in a two-tier Britain where an unreformed financial sector continues to pocket huge rewards while the rest of us are left to clear up their mess.
"We’ve given the Square Mile far too long a leash – the result has been a sector that feathers its own nest despite being embroiled in one scandal after another.
"The Government’s softly-softly approach to the City clearly has not worked – it’s time we tackled this bloated sector by ensuring they pay more tax."
The Robin Hood Tax Campaign includes a group of 119 organisations, including Barnado’s, Comic Relief, Oxfam, Friends of the Earth and the TUC.
