The billionaire brothers behind Betfred have topped the Sunday Times 2026 Tax List, after paying an estimated £400.1 million to the UK Treasury, making them the country’s biggest individual taxpayers.
Fred and Peter Done, founders of the betting empire, took the top spot in the annual rankings, with around half of their contribution linked to gambling duties generated by Betfred’s nationwide chain of betting shops.
The list, now in its eighth year, highlights the scale of tax paid by Britain’s wealthiest business figures and celebrities, even as concerns grow over a steady migration of high-net-worth individuals overseas.
Pub tycoon Tim Martin ranked eighth, with a personal tax contribution just under £200 million. His company, JD Wetherspoon, operates 794 pubs and paid a total of £837.1 million in taxes last year, averaging more than £1 million per pub across corporation tax, VAT, business rates and gaming duties.
Martin, who owns 26.7% of the group, said he had no complaints about his personal tax bill, describing taxation as a political choice for voters rather than a personal grievance.
Other leading contributors in the top ten included financiers Alex Gerko, Chris Rokos and Peter Hargreaves, alongside retail figures such as Mike Ashley of Sports Direct, Tom Morris of Home Bargains, the Perkins family behind Specsavers, and Stephen Rubin, a major shareholder in JD Sports and owner of Speedo.
Among public figures, Harry Styles emerged as the highest-contributing celebrity, ranked 54th overall, with an estimated £24.7 million tax bill. Most of his contribution stems from touring and merchandise income generated through his company, Erskine Records.
He finished ahead of fellow singer Ed Sheeran, who paid just under £20 million in tax after receiving a £41 million dividend last year.
At 72nd on the list, Erling Haaland became the youngest entrant. The Manchester City striker, whose earnings exceed £500,000 a week before bonuses and image rights, is estimated to have paid £16.9 million in UK tax.
Other notable names included JK Rowling, the Timpson family, Dyson founder James Dyson, and Douglas and Iain Anderson of the GAP Group, which supplies infrastructure for festivals and major events.
The 2026 list coincides with what the Sunday Times describes as an ongoing exodus of wealthy individuals from the UK. Fourteen of those featured are now resident overseas, with several based in Monaco, Jersey, Guernsey, Portugal, Cyprus, Dubai and the United States.
Despite the trend, Peter Done, 78, said he had no intention of leaving Britain. “We owe this country,” he told the newspaper, adding that successful entrepreneurs have a responsibility to pay tax where their wealth was created.
According to HMRC data, the top 1% of earners in the UK — those earning more than £219,000 before tax — currently contribute around 26.6% of all income tax receipts. While still significant, that share has fallen from 30.7% in 2021–22, partly due to frozen income tax thresholds and the relocation of some high earners abroad.
The Sunday Times Tax List is compiled using the most recent company accounts filed up to 10 January and includes a broad range of levies, from corporation and dividend tax to capital gains, income tax and sector-specific duties such as gambling and alcohol taxes.
