Income Tax UK
About Income Tax UK
British income tax was introduced by Prime Minister William Pitt the Younger in 1799 to fund the Napoleonic Wars. The tax was 2 old pence per pound, approximately 0.83 percent, on incomes over 60. Pitts income tax raised significant revenue but was deeply unpopular. It was repealed after the Peace of Amiens in 1802 and reinstated in 1803. Addingtons income tax of 1803 introduced the concept of withholding at source. The income tax was abolished after Waterloo in 1816, with Parliament ordering the records destroyed. Income tax was reintroduced by Robert Peel in 1842 and has been continuous since. The UK income tax became the model for income tax systems worldwide, including the US federal income tax.
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