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Britain's poorest people pay more of their income in taxes than the very richest, official figures reveal.

The worst-off tenth of households handed 47% of their money back to the government in 2014/15 – up from 43% two years earlier.

Yet the richest tenth paid just 34%, down slightly from 35% in the two years previously.

The gulf was laid bare today in annual figures by the Office for National Statistics which show the richest 10% earn £108,000 while the poorest earn just £4,467.

Once cash benefits are included, the richest receive 10 times more than the poorest - £110,000 a year before tax compared to £11,000.

Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell told the Mirror: "These are truly shocking figures and further prove that we are clearly not all in it together as George Osborne claims.

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% of income after benefits paid in tax ONS 2014/15

"The huge gap between what the poorest and those more well off pay in tax only goes to show the unfairness at the heart of this Tory government.

"The truth is that the Tories are cutting taxes for millionaires while also cutting vital public services, and expecting the rest of us pick up the tab.”

Equality Trust Director John Hood said: “It can't be right that millionaires can pay a smaller proportion of their income in tax than their cleaners.

“We need our politicians to recognise just how ridiculous this is and commit to building a fairer tax system that reduces the huge gap between the richest and the rest of us.”

The anti-poverty charity found the figures by analysing ONS data on all income including benefits, and all taxes including indirect taxes like VAT, the lottery and duty on cigarettes and alcohol.

Overall the poorest tenth of households paid £5,012 in tax while the richest tenth paid £37,829.

That means the poorest tenth paid more in tax than they earned from wages alone.

% of income BEFORE benefits paid in tax ONS 2014/15

They also received more cash benefits than they earned from a job, with an average of £6,233 per household.

Including 'benefits in kind' like education and the NHS, 51% of households received more in benefits than they paid in tax.

Despite the Tories' war on welfare, this was more than in any year under Labour until the 2008 financial crash.

George Osborne insists he is helping the worst off by embracing the Lib Dem policy of more than doubling the income tax threshold - taking minimum wage earners out of income tax.

He also insisted the top 1% will pay a third of all income tax by 2020, but this does not include indirect taxes like VAT.

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