Madam, – When the need for public money is so crucial, it surprises me that the fairest and simplest way of raising it – income tax – is seldom in the headlines. Fair? Well, it would be if there were not so many cheats (brought up to cheat, to employ cheats or just left to cheat) in our society.
All schemes for tax evasion, tax avoidance, residence dodges and avenues to tax havens would have to go. To achieve this would create useful employment paying for itself. And then – hike away.
Instead of tax bands, a curve of tax against taxable income would be fairer and easy for all to use. A parabola whose shape, once the maximum untaxed income has been decided, could be governed by a single parameter whose value would be the other political decision. Such a curve could be merciful to those with small resources and merciless to that increasing number of citizens whose salaries have become patently obscene. Of course, bonuses, which are covert bribes, would be illegal or taxed at 100 per cent.
Utopian – or worth a try? – Yours, etc,