NATIONAL INCOME

Press, Volume LXIV, Issue 19343, 22 June 1928, Page 9

NATIONAL INCOME

MORE EQUITABLE TAXATION. MR JULIUS VOGEL'S SUGGESTIONS. (rBOM Otfß OWN CORRESPONDENT.) LONDON, May 16. Mr Julius L. F. Vogel, in one of his periodical letters to "The Times," maintains that our national taxation is based on obsolete principles, "The essence of national taxation," he says, "is, or should be, a contribution by each individual citizen towards the overhead costs of the nation. The extent of each one's contribution should be strictly proportional to his share of the combined national income. As things are, this conception has been lost sight of to a great extent. Broadly speaking, about half the nation's taxes are collected directly from under 10 per cent, of the population, and it is quite possible for those not paying direct taxes to avoid .almost altogether contributions to the National Exchequer by sacrificing the enjoyment of alcohol, tobacco, and a few other luxuries.

"I suggest that the immense Bum required to meet our debt service, pensions, and social services since the war calls for a complete revision of our taxation on a logical and scientific basis. The method of searching for sections of the community with ability to pay and drawing the necessary funds from their pockets is neither equitable nor judicious, as the results of such taxation are difficult to foresee, and almost always they aggravate unemployment directly or indirectly.

Direct Taxation Upon All. "I am convinced that those responsible for the statesmanlike revision of our local taxation, to remove insupportable burdens from industries, can equally well devise a scheme for national taxation in conformity with the altered conditions prevailing. I would urge that such a scheme should impose some direct taxation, however small and however steeply graded, on every member of the community. It is only in this way that the increased burden of extravagant national expenditure of any kind can be brought home to every citizen. I would suggest that the bulk of the nation's taxation should be collected by such graded income-tax, and that Customs duties should be imposed not for revenue, but for safeguarding home industries. In respect of excise, I would suggest that this, too, should bo largely reduced, as the incidence falls on sections of the community, and not necessarily in proportion to _ each individual's Bhare of the national income. "In conclusion, I would urge that the whole question of national taxation needs complete revision, and_ that this would result in a fair distribution of the burden, and greatly reduced costs of collection. It is a task of constructive statesmanship which is worthy of the labours of a Conservative Government, and it would help materially in reviving industries, which is the only logical way of solving the unemployment problem."