The UK's poorest households are paying 47 percent of their income in tax according to new research, according to the TaxPayers' Alliance.
Analysis of Office for National Statistics figures showed that the average gross income, including benefits, in the group was £9,743 but after tax the figure was £5,132.
The figures for 2012/13 showed that for the poorest 10%, some 13.9% of their gross income went on VAT, 7.2% on council tax and 5.6% on alcohol or tobacco duties.
The top 10% of households paid an average 35% of their gross income in taxes, some £37,287 a year, with income tax accounting for 19.1% of the money paid to the Exchequer.
Liam Purcell, communications and supporter relations manager, Church Action on Poverty told Premier's News Hour what changes to the system he thinks are needed, :"We need fair pay, we need a living wage, we need to make sure that there's a viable safety net there for people and the benefits system doesn't just leave people destitute as it often doing at the moment."
Liam Purcell, Church Action on Poverty:
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Article by Desmond Busteed
Desmond Busteed is a multimedia journalist for Premier.
