Polly Toynbee wrote in the Guardian today of the Fabian Society's call:

for a new pressure group to campaign, explain and lobby for a more progressive tax system. There needs to be a counterweight to the right and the Tax Payers' Alliance, a voice to make the case for fairer taxes, to explain why paying taxes is a social good, to shame avoiders and praise the civilising value of tax money well spent on the things that matter most.

TJN is, of course, already fulfilling the technical part of this brief. But it's true that we're not a mass campaigning organisation, and more a research one.

And I wholeheartedly endorse the need for such a campaign.

But as Toynbee says - a first target has to be the Labour party, and the Fabians have to be willing to criticise that party of this is to work. I really hope they will because the issue has to be bigger than the party now: the need for reform is too strong for this to be ducked.