The TUC now says a 16% bank surcharge would raise £24bn over four years and a 35% surcharge £60bn, according to a statement from general secretary Paul Nowak. That goes well beyond its earlier figure of £9bn over four years, or £2.25bn a year, for restoring the surcharge from 3% to 8%.
The new estimates work out at £6bn a year at 16% and £15bn a year at 35%. They rise roughly in proportion to the union's own 8% costing, but they have not been independently checked.
The TUC also says the chief executives of the big four banks averaged £8.9m in pay last year. It puts that at 182 times the mean full-time UK wage of £48,930. The arithmetic holds up. 182 times £48,930 is just over £8.9m, which means a chief executive earns in about two days what the average full-time worker earns in a year. The union says big four chief financial officers averaged £7.5m.
Brit Brief reports that Barclays boss C.S. Venkatakrishnan received £15m last year, including £12.7m in bonuses. It does not give a source for the figure.
The Mirror, in a piece carried by AOL, is also calling for the surcharge to be restored.
The Treasury has not confirmed any change to the surcharge.