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AS THE Government grapples with the crisis in public finances, some imaginative fiscal responses will be required. So it seems a rather pointed coincidence that the announcement of an emergency budget should be made just as Russia is marking the 310th anniversary of Peter the Great's tax on beards.

In fairness, the reforming czar's infamous measure was not primarily a fundraising exercise. It was part of a drive to westernise his countrymen in everything including their appearance. More particularly, it was an assault on the power of the Boyars, the Russian noblemen who wore long beards and traditional dress. Peter shaved some of these personally to make his point.