Bonuses paid to bankers that exceed £25,000 are to be subject to 50 per cent tax, says Alistair Darling.

In his Pre-Budget Report, announced today, the chancellor announced that employers will be subject to a 50 per cent tax on bonuses over £25,000.

The tax will not be imposed on individuals. Instead, banks that want to pay individual bonuses worth more than a certain amount will have to pay a tax of 50 per cent on the total bonus pot.

Business secretary Lord Mandelson said, ‘I know some people think that the banks have brought this on themselves and that we just ought to teach them a lesson. That's not the frame of mind that we are in.’