Tax App To Show How Government Spends Your Money

People living in the UK will be able to see how the government spends its money with the help of a new tax calculator, launched today.

The app is part of the government drive to make the tax system more transparent and easier to understand. The updated version of the trusty calculator found on the HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) website will also be available on the iTunes store and Google Play.

The good taxman

The launch comes as new research reveals that 57 percent of taxpayers are lost in the dark forest of the UK tax system and do not know how much income tax and National Insurance they pay in a year.

The research also found 70 percent of bank customers check their statements, but only 26 percent look at how much tax they have paid, with only one in ten able to tell an exact figure.

Not only does the new app help to hold the government to account, it also “makes it easy for taxpayers to see how much they can expect to pay”, the Treasury said.

“We think it is right that people know how much tax they pay and what the Government spends it on. Our new tax calculator will allow them to find out, which is a big step towards a more transparent, 21st Century system,” said David Gauke, exchequer secretary to the Treasury.

Last month, as part of the same campaign, the government had announced that from 2014, 20 million UK taxpayers will receive a personal tax statement showing how much tax they have paid and what it was spent on.

How much do you know about smartphones? Take our quiz!