Tax survey reveals resentful British

Eight out of 10 Britons think they are paying more tax than they were five years ago, with nearly half blaming the rise on stealth taxes, a survey showed today.

Around 81% of people thought their tax burden had increased during the past five years, and 73% resented the rise, according to insurer Friends Provident.

Four out of 10 people thought the increase was being driven by stealth taxes, while 24% blamed the higher sums they were handing over to the taxman on changes to income tax brackets.

People were most likely to have seen noticeable increases in council tax at 64%, followed by fuel duty at 58% and road tax at 45%.

But despite their resentment about the rising tax burden, 56% of people did not know what income tax bracket they were in, while nearly half of people were not taking steps to reduce the amount of tax they paid.