Bank bonuses soar to highest level since 2008 crash as unions demand windfall tax

Britain’s banks paid out £16.4 billion in bonuses during the first three months of 2026, the highest quarterly total since the 2008 global financial crisis, when taxpayers were forced to rescue the banking sector with tens of billions of pounds.

Analysis by the Trades Union Congress (TUC), based on Office for National Statistics data, found that around £25 billion was paid in bonuses to approximately 1.1 million workers in the finance and insurance sector in the year to March 2026. The largest share of that total, £16.4 billion, was paid between January and March alone.

Among the biggest payouts, Lloyds Banking Group chief executive Charlie Nunn received £7.4 million for 2025, including £4 million in bonuses, while NatWest boss Paul Thwaite received a £6.5 million pay package, of which £4 million was made up of bonuses.

The figures come as millions of households continue to struggle with high living costs and rising energy bills, prompting renewed calls for a windfall tax on banks.

The TUC says soaring bank profits and executive rewards demonstrate why the bank surcharge tax should be increased, describing the move as “common sense and long overdue.”

The union is calling for the surcharge to be raised to help fund a permanent reduction in household energy bills through a social tariff. It estimates that increasing the surcharge to 16% would raise £24 billion over four years, while a 35% surcharge, matching the windfall tax previously imposed on energy companies by the Conservative government, would generate around £60 billion over the same period. Even restoring the surcharge to 8%, reversing previous Conservative cuts, would raise £9 billion over four years, which the TUC describes as the “bare minimum.”

TUC General Secretary Paul Nowak said: “While sky-high bills are looming for working people, bank bonuses are booming.

“Every time there is talk of taxing banks, some of the richest people in the country start whining and try to claim they can’t afford to pay any more. But the big banks are making a killing off the back of higher interest rates and mortgage misery across the country. They can well afford to pay more tax.

“The case for an increase in the bank surcharge tax has never been greater. It’s a long overdue common-sense solution – and the government should use to money raised to cut people’s energy bills.”

The analysis comes amid growing calls from millionaires themselves for higher taxes on the richest.

More than 120 UK-based millionaires have signed an open letter urging Andy Burnham to increase taxes on wealth rather than raising taxes on income from work. The signatories include Gary Lineker, screenwriter Richard Curtis, former City trader Gary Stevenson and crime novelist Val McDermid. They argue that those with substantial wealth should contribute more to help tackle inequality and invest in public services.

“We want you to tax us. We can afford it,” the letter states.

The group argues that as political power is decentralised, economic power should be too, saying greater taxation of wealth could help fund hospitals, schools, social care, sustainable jobs and affordable finance for small businesses.

The letter also dispels the argument that higher taxes on wealth would prompt an exodus of millionaires, saying that some have “outdated economic thinking” and “few others [are] desperate to hold onto every penny they can. But they are a minority.”

Andy Burnham has said he won’t rule out introducing a wealth tax. 

However, speaking with Lineker on his podcast last week, the PM said he would “properly look at the state of things” before considering a wealth tax. He also said he didn’t want to come in and “create new divisions and pitch people one and against another.”