British workers lose almost half of their hard-earned income to tax, according to recent research.

Patrick Minford, a professor from Cardiff Business School and a retired treasury adviser, claims half of a typical workers wage goes on tax, according to a report in the Daily Mail. .

He says for every £100 we earn, £31.40 is taken in income tax and national insurance, and a further £12.30 is spent on indirect taxes (eg VAT, duty on fuel and alcohol) totaling £43.70.

Professor Minford's figures are based on an employee earning £29,000 but he goes on to explain that for higher-rate taxpayers the situation is much worse.

For those paying 40 per cent in tax, £51.60 out of every £100 goes to the government in taxes.

However, a Treasury spokesman said: "The analysis takes no account of the £4,895 tax-free personal allowance and makes questionable assumptions about an individual's consumption of goods."