Land Tax favoured by the FT

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I have always been dead against this whole artificial 'Henry George' land tax movement. Their agenda becomes clearer now they have been joined by elitist writer Martin Wolf. If anyone can get hold of the fll article I'd appreciate it.
Land is something we all need - and a land tax is like taxing water, books or food. Any just or moral taxation policy - assuming the government can be trusted to spend tax revenue wisely which they can't - is to tax ostentation and the trappings of opulence; luxuries such as global financial services (the tobin tax), aviation fuel and fast or gas guzzling cars. As a basic moral principle anything which is a basic human need must be free from tax. We'll be taxing rough sleeping next.
Tony Gosling  0117 944 6219


Martin Wolf: Why on earth not put a tax on land?
Financial Times - Feb 19 2004

http://news.ft.com/servlet/ContentServer?pagename=FT.com/StoryFT/FullStory&c=StoryFT&cid=1075982675559&p=1012571727102

Taxing land, rather than development, is moral because owners contribute nothing to land's value; and efficient, because taxing land distorts nobody's choices.



National tax on land values finds favour
20 February 2004 08:50

http://www.egi.co.uk/news_detail.asp?news_id=176098

A land value tax is an idea whose time has come, says Martin Wolf, in the Financial Times.

He says uniform site, or land value taxation, is a "no-brainer" but what makes it particularly attractive today is its superiority to other taxes now imposed on property.

He says what is needed is a national tax on the value of land holdings instead of the council tax and the uniform business rate. He says it is both fair and efficient and should be adopted.

Financial Times 20/02/04 page 17