Windfall tax on banks could recoup QE losses and raise £8bn a year, IPPR says

The think tank said public money was flowing directly to bank shareholders as a result of a ‘flawed policy design’ (PA) - (PA Archive)

Rachel Reeves should tax bank windfalls to recover taxpayer money spent on compensating losses from the Bank of England’s cash-printing drive, an influential think tank has said.

Hiking a levy on the profits from major firms such as Barclays, Lloyds, HSBC and NatWest could raise up to £8 billion a year for public services, according to a report by the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR).