That grandly Dickensian-sounding outfit, the Office of Tax Simplification, has recommended merging national insurance and income tax. This proposal, first mooted … Continue reading “Merging National Insurance and Income Tax – maybe this time?”

Given the proximity to the election, most commentators predicted a ‘Budget of giveaways’, full of populist gimmicks. Judged against that … Continue reading “Osborne’s Budget delivers too little bang for the buck”

It’s often said that modern day politicians lack conviction – that is, they are afraid of expressing their firmly held … Continue reading “Shifting justifications for the 50p tax rate”

A preview from the Spring 2014 issue of EA Magazine. Marginal tax rates and income: new time series evidence Karel … Continue reading “Briefing: summarising and signposting essential reading we’ve seen elsewhere”

First, the good news. Poverty has been on the decline for several years. Since 2007, the proportion of the British … Continue reading “To properly tackle poverty, we must look at the cost of living”

Tim Montgomerie has been a leading advocate of a move from income to wealth taxes in recent months. In a … Continue reading “When it comes to taxing property, it is important to get your premises right”

A group of American conservatives have set up an initiative called ‘We are the 53%‘, echoing the Occupy movement’s ‘We … Continue reading “The 99ers and the 53ers: when two groups quarrel, a third rejoices”

The Liberal Democrat leadership is in danger of committing a cardinal sin at their party conference in Birmingham. They are … Continue reading “The LibDems should back enterprise, not soak the rich”

In many ways it is too early to draw conclusions for public policy from the riots which the country has … Continue reading “Economic reflections and the riots”