| Topic: | Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Mansion Tax and Bedroom Tax | |
| Posted by: | Sam Hearn | |
| Date/Time: | 20/04/15 15:15:00 |
| Income Tax is not a wealth tax - as it says on the tin it is a tax on income. CGT & IHT are wealth taxes and random in their impact. No one knows when they are going to die or will choose to sell an asset. Arguably stamp duty on property purchases is another random wealth tax. Pretty much every tax jurisdiction that has had a wealth tax has abandoned it. The key features of a good tax are; 1. Easy to understand and calculate. 2. Does not distort economic activity in a harmful way. 3. Cheap to administer in relation to the revenue it raises. 4. Regarded by most citizens as fair/equitable. 5. Hard to evade. 6. Copied by other tax jurisdictions. Wealth taxation does not sore very highly on any of these. |