Scottish Greens recommit to Scottish Wealth Tax following Times’ Top 10 Rich List totalling £23 billion in Scotland
Scottish Greens recommit to Scottish Wealth Tax following Times’ Top 10 Rich List totalling £23 billion in Scotland
Scottish Greens co-leader Gillian Mackay MSP has said the Sunday Times Rich List shows the need for a Scottish Wealth Tax to address the “ridiculous” concentration of wealth and power in the hands of a tiny number of people.
The 2026 Sunday Times Rich List has reported the top ten wealthiest people and families in Scotland are worth more than £23 billion combined, more than the total Scottish Income Tax paid in a year (£17.1bn).
The party’s co-leader Gillian Mackay MSP argues that this shows the need for a Scottish Wealth Tax that taxes wealth, not work.
The Scottish Greens have pledged to develop proposals to tax wealth through a Scottish Wealth Tax, as well as a range of other plans from taxing land and property more fairly to replacing the broken Council Tax with a fairer Residential Property Tax, and introducing taxes on mansions, yachts and second homes.
Scottish Greens co-leader Gillian Mackay MSP said:
“The Sunday Times Rich List shows a ridiculous amount of wealth in the hands of a tiny number of powerful people, while we are told there is no money for buses, roads, homes, schools or the NHS.
“Scotland is not poor. The problem is that far too much of our wealth has been hoarded by the likes of billionaires, landowners, oil barons, property empires, media dynasties and bus bosses.
“Scotland’s ten richest people and families are worth more than £23 billion between them. To put the scale of the inequality in perspective, that is more than all the income tax paid by workers across Scotland in an entire year.
“That tells you everything about the scale of inequality in Scotland’s economy. Working people are being forced to carry the burden, while a tiny number of billionaires hoard the wealth.
“Even a fraction of that kind of money would transform Scotland. It would help fund free buses, fix roads, improve social care, support the NHS, build warm homes and invest in the public services that every community relies on."
Gillian added:
“The Scottish Greens are committed to taxing wealth, not work. By developing a Scottish Wealth Tax, we would make landowners, polluters, profiteers and billionaires pay their fair share, then use that money for the common good.
“And with the powers of a normal independent country, Scotland could go much further. We could properly tax wealth, land, property, and corporate profits to invest it in the good things people actually need, without the limitations of Westminster or the interests of corporate greed.
“The choice is simple. We can stick with the status-quo by protecting billionaires who extract profit from our communities and pollute our environment, or we can choose a different path, taxing extreme wealth and building a fairer, greener Scotland.”
ENDS