An analysis of capital gains tax has revealed a striking contrast: residents of the London district of Notting Hill accumulated more income from 2015 to 2019 than the entire populations of Liverpool, Manchester, and Newcastle combined. This points to two facts: firstly, the geographical concentration of wealth in Britain, and secondly, the disproportionate advantages enjoyed by the wealthiest individuals.

For instance, only 0.3% of people earning up to £50,000 a year have sources of passive taxable income, while nearly 40% of those earning over £5 million a year receive profits from passive capital gains in some form. Geographically, London and the southeast of the country dominate, accounting for 47.4% of all gains, while Wales, the northeast, and Northern Ireland receive a minimal share.

It’s no secret that affluent areas of London, such as Kensington and Chelsea, are hubs of enormous capital accumulation. However, the most remarkable discovery about hyper-localisedwealth accumulation came from the small district of Notting Hill, where just 6,400 residents can boast the highest incomes.

Looking at the top of the distribution pyramid, it turns out that the 50,000 wealthiest residents of Britain hold £56 billion or 86.4% of all gains, creating a wealth gap on the verge of catastrophe. Despite calls for reforming capital gains tax having been heard for years, there are no plans to take real action in the near future.