Why does the UK tax year start on 6 April each year?

[NibblyPig]

I thought it was because of the Christmas period being quite busy and having lots of holidays that the accountants would all be off then and people would be scrabbling to find someone to do their last minute tax returns...

[VectraMan]

Source: Why does the UK tax year start on 6 April each year? « Tax Advisory Partnership

So in summary the UK decided it was too good to follow the common sense approach used the rest of Europe, probably listening to tedious types going on about "sovereignty" and "getting control of our calender"; got into a complete and utter mess before admitting BrusselsRome was right all along and had to resort to a ridiculously complicated fudge to work around it that's still felt hundreds of years later.

At least that sort of thinking doesn't exist today.