The Prime Minister has been urged to launch a fundamental review of property taxes at the Budget as new research reveals that replacing Council Tax and Stamp Duty with a Proportional Property Tax would deliver a £51.2 million boost to high streets across Middlesbrough.
The analysis by campaign group, Fairer Share, estimates the additional annual spending that could result from a Proportional Property Tax. It shows that resulting spending uplift – where the average household in Middlesbrough would save £850 a year – could lead to people across the area spending more in the local high street, handing a much-needed economic boost to cafes, restaurants and shops.
Using official Office for National Statistics data to forecast spending patterns based on recent trends, Fairer Share believes Middlesbrough could benefit in a number of ways including:
• As much as £3.3m a year would be more spent in local restaurants and hotels.
• £4.3m would be spent on household goods and services and clothes and footwear,
assuming all savings are spent and in line with current UK household spending patterns.
• £5.8m on recreation and culture, a broad category including cinema tickets, gardening equipment and sports tickets.
• £10.8m towards housing and energy costs, helping Middlesbrough households meet some of the biggest pressures identified during the cost-of-living crisis.
The current Council Tax system, based on property evaluations from 1991, sees families in Band D properties in Middlesbrough pay £2,548 a year in Council Tax, compared with just £1,047 in Westminster – despite homes in Westminster being worth many times more.
Andrew Dixon, Founder of Fairer Share, the campaign group for a Proportional Property Tax, said: “Our analysis shows the economic impact of property tax reform in Middlesbrough. If this is a government serious about the cost of living, reforming two outdated property taxes should be part of the answer. By putting more money back into people’s pockets, reform would boost demand, support high streets and hospitality, and help drive growth across the wider economy.
“The upcoming Budget should be the moment the Government starts a serious, independent review of Council Tax and Stamp Duty. These are two taxes no government would design today, and we should be looking at how to replace them with a system that is fairer for households and better for growth.”
Luke Myer, MP for Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland said: “Local people and businesses would both gain from replacing Council Tax and Stamp Duty which unfairly hit areas like ours the hardest. I am backing the campaign for a Proportional Property tax to help boost the economy and provide help for the cost of living.”
Widespread dissatisfaction with Council Tax across the UK
August polling by Fairer Share shows widespread dissatisfaction with Council Tax. Nearly two-thirds of Britons (63%) describe Council Tax as unfair, while only 25% regard it as fair.
When presented with Fairer Share’s proposal to abolish Council Tax and residential Stamp Duty and replace them with an annual proportional property tax based on current property values, 47% supported the proposal and just 13% opposed it.
Nearly four in ten people across the North of England (38%) say reducing or replacing Council Tax should be a government priority for easing pressure on household finances, second only to action on reducing energy bills.
Fairer Share’s Budget submission called on HM Treasury to commission a full, independent review of Council Tax and Stamp Duty. The submission argues that the current system holds back living standards, housing mobility and economic growth, while leaving council revenues reliant on outdated property values and tax burdens inconsistent nationwide.
ENDS
Notes to Editors
For media queries, interview or op-ed requests: Fairer Share founder Andrew Dixon appears regularly in the media, and is available for interviews, quotes or op-eds. Please contact support@fairershare.org.uk. There are also wide-ranging resources on the Fairer Share website. For urgent queries, contact Tom Wilson on 07794014371.
Methodological note: The analysis estimates the additional annual spending that could result from replacing Council Tax and residential Stamp Duty with a Proportional Property Tax. It uses 2025 ONS data on household counts and local income profiles, alongside Fairer Share’s 2020 modelling on average household impacts from reform. The resulting spending uplift is allocated across categories using the latest ONS Family Spending data on how households spend their money nationally. The model assumes that the full household gain is spent. Figures are estimates and should not be treated as observed local area-specific spending patterns.
The previous Fairer Share polling referenced was a representative online poll of 2,048 UK adults between 1st and 4th August 2026, conducted by JL Partners, a member of the British Polling Council.