An analysis by the Resolution Foundation which examined the growth of self-employment found that one of the key drivers of this growth has been the tax advantages enjoyed by the self-employed.

The Resolution Foundation found that the numbers of self-employed workers grew by 22% to 5 million since the 2008 financial crisis.

One of the key drivers of this growth has been the tax advantages enjoyed by the self-employed. For a worker costing a firm £100,000, a self-employed worker enjoys a tax advantage of around £7,000 over a similarly expensive employee.

The data also showed that nearly 60% of the growth in self-employment since 2009 has been in high-skilled, higher-paying ‘privileged’ sectors, despite them making up 40% of the self-employed. The fastest growing sectors have been advertising (100%), public administration (90%), and banking (60%). The remaining 40% of the growth has taken place in sectors such as construction and cleaning.

According to Business Insider UK, if the trend of self-employment growth continues, the Treasury could lose up to £6 billion by 2020. The Institute of Fiscal Studies has called on a level playing field so that the self-employed would pay the same rate as employed workers.