UK public call on Government to take firmer action to ensure business makes a fair tax contribution
Research commissioned by the Fair Tax Foundation has found increased support among the UK public for responsible corporate tax conduct and for government measures which encourage this.
There is substantial support for new corporate tax transparency measures being applied to everything from the smallest microenterprise to the largest multinational. Almost three-quarters (74%) believe that the UK should force multinational businesses to disclose how much income, profit and tax they pay in each country in which they operate (referred to as public country-by-country reporting). Even more, 77%, say that they want to see all companies, whatever their size, publicly disclose the taxes that they do or don’t pay in the UK. Currently, in the UK, the vast majority of small businesses provide very little financial transparency – despite the fact that, according to HMRC, they account for the bulk of the UK’s corporate tax avoidance.
Support for continuation of digital services taxes is strong. Over two-thirds (69%) agree that the UK should ensure that big technology companies (such as Facebook, Google, Apple and Amazon) pay an additional Digital Services Tax to increase their overall tax contribution in the UK. US Big Tech is paying a much lower tax contribution than other sectors in the UK, but so also are the likes of TikTok. Support for digital services taxes was particularly strong among those who voted Labour at the last general election, at 77%.
Support for the Fair Tax Mark has also increased. The vast majority would rather shop with (71%) or work for (73%) businesses that can prove they’re paying their fair share of tax. Almost two-thirds (64%) would trust a business with the Fair Tax Mark more than one without it, and over half of people (54%) would switch the businesses they use in favour of one which has the Fair Tax Mark.
Almost three-quarters (72%) believe that it is important to celebrate businesses who can demonstrate that they pay the right amount of tax and who overtly shun the artificial use of tax havens and contrived tax avoidance practices.
Fair Tax Mark certification has now been secured by 275 businesses, which together employ more than 450,000 people and contribute a massive £5.3bn / €6.1bn annually in corporate tax worldwide. The Fair Tax Mark (at 36%) is second only to HMRC (at 49%) when it comes to sources of re-assurance on whether a company is paying the right amount of tax.
On public procurement, two thirds (66%) believe the Government and local councils should consider a company’s ethics and how they pay their tax when awarding contracts to companies. Within this, there has been a significant increase (from 8% to 17%) in those agreeing that public contracts should only be awarded to ethical companies who pay a fair amount of tax, even if this means less value for money and a lower quality of service. All of which resonates fantastically well with our growing network of Fair Tax Councils.
Levels of support for responsible business conduct rose in 2025 on every single question polled – by an average of four percentage points. Increases were driven by higher levels of concern among young adults.
Strong support was found across all political persuasions, but was particularly high among those who voted Labour at the last general election in 2024 – with agreement on the importance of responsible corporate tax conduct often in excess of 80% of such respondents. There were no significant gender or sub-regional differences in responses.
Paul Monaghan, Chief Executive, Fair Tax Foundation said:
This research demonstrates that the UK is at its core a Fair Tax Nation, with the vast majority of people showing a strong propensity to ‘shop with’ and ‘work for’ businesses that demonstrate responsible tax conduct.
The UK public care about many issues, but ‘tax justice’ is consistently at the top of their concerns when it comes to corporate conduct. They want to see Government do much more to ensure that all businesses, both large and small, pay their fair share of tax. Politicians have a real mandate for action. There needs to be a step change in tax transparency. The days of large multinationals such as Amazon refusing to disclose what their income, profit and corporate taxes are in the UK need to end. As does the almost complete absence of tax transparency we see from the vast majority of micro-enterprises – which is helping to fuel fraud across the country.
It’s great to see that Fair Tax Mark certified businesses are leading way, because tax avoidance doesn’t just rob public services of vital revenue, it also undermines the ability of business to compete fairly and reduces national productivity.“
The Fair Tax Foundation has commissioned polling the UK on various aspects of corporate tax conduct since 2017, with a synopsis of trends over the period 2017-2023 described in the report Fair Tax Nation. Polling in 2025 was commissioned from the Walnut Omnibus: a nationally representative survey of c.2,015 adults across GB between 8th and 10th April 2025.
Headline image generated by Perplexity AI.
