Stealth taxes pull in an extra £12bn Analysis by the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) shows that stealth taxes helped the Treasury pull in an extra £12bn last year. The Government's spending watchdog said more people including those in motorsport were dragged into paying the 40p rate of income tax rate than previously thought on the back of a strong jobs market, with this pushing up employee tax and National Insurance revenues including those from motorsport workers. The OBR’s annual Forecast Evaluation Report shows that faster pay growth and higher employment saw it underestimate its income tax and National Insurance revenue forecasts by more than £40bn. Tax receipts were boosted to the tune of £23.9bn as more people stayed in work, while a further £12bn increase in receipts was largely because of “stronger-than-expected aggregate pay growth within higher tax bands as fiscal drag brought more people than anticipated into higher tax brackets.” The OBR also noted that onshore corporation tax receipts were £23.1bn – or 58.6% – higher than expected in 2021/22 compared with its March 2021 forecast. It said “a few, relatively tax-rich sectors of the economy” and “very large companies” were responsible for the better-than-expected tax take.