City says it pays 11.2 per cent of Britain's taxes

The City of London yesterday sought to put a more positive sheen on its somewhat tarnished reputation, arguing that Britain's financial services industry last year accounted for more than £1 of every £10 raised by the Treasury in tax.

The City of London Corporation, which provides the square mile's local government as well as acting as its cheerleader in chief, said financial services had contributed £53.4bn in the 2009-10 financial year – 11.2 per cent of the total tax take.

The figure, calculated by PricewaterhouseCoopers, does not include the previous Chancellor's one off tax on bankers' bonuses or the 50 per cent top rate imposed on the UK's top earners – many of whom work in the City.

Stuart Fraser, the policy chairman at the Corporation, called for a business environment that was "internationally competitive" to keep the revenues "sustainable".