Comments on: Tax simplification http://www.taxresearch.org.uk/Blog/2008/07/14/tax-simplification/ Richard Murphy on tax and corporate accountability Fri, 09 Jan 2009 05:43:39 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.6 By: Graeme Pietersz http://www.taxresearch.org.uk/Blog/2008/07/14/tax-simplification/#comment-464357 Graeme Pietersz Mon, 14 Jul 2008 12:09:27 +0000 http://www.taxresearch.org.uk/Blog/2008/07/14/tax-simplification/#comment-464357 Surely there are some simplifications that would eliminate opportunities to avoid tax. Treating capital gains as income (as you have suggested in the past) or abolishing tax breaks such as R & D credits would be simplifying. I am not sure that you have wide agreement to those objectives. Right wing (e.g. US neo-con) thought seems to be increasingly opposed to 3. The argument is that people are rich because they deserve to be (through hard work etc.) and the poor should "get on their bikes". This leads to their opposition to progressive taxes. Personally I agree with you, with some reservations about 2. Surely there are some simplifications that would eliminate opportunities to avoid tax. Treating capital gains as income (as you have suggested in the past) or abolishing tax breaks such as R & D credits would be simplifying.

I am not sure that you have wide agreement to those objectives. Right wing (e.g. US neo-con) thought seems to be increasingly opposed to 3. The argument is that people are rich because they deserve to be (through hard work etc.) and the poor should “get on their bikes”. This leads to their opposition to progressive taxes.

Personally I agree with you, with some reservations about 2.

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