Public revenue without taxation

The author argues that the recurrent economic ills which beset modern industrial economies are the result of the failure of orthodox economic theories. Economic thought and policy making for most of this century has been dominated by the twin ills of unemployment and inflation, the demand-side school concentrating their efforts on eradicating unemployment, the supply-side on eradicating inflation.

But, as Dr Burgess points out, 'these schools describe one-sided views which distort what is in reality a coherent whole ... In the sphere of government, policy prescriptions derived from half a theory mislead both politicians and their electors. Throughout the world governments have been misled into pursuing policies which have led from a slump to an inflation and on to a combination of the two - "slumpflation".'.

At the heart of the problem lies a lack of understanding of the harmful effects of taxation on a trading economy. Governments must raise revenue to finance their operations, but it has been assumed that taxation is the only means. Dr Burgess maintains that this is an error which has distorted the efficient operation of modern trading economies and that there is a natural source of government revenue, natural in the sense of arising from the nature of a trading economy.

Having argued his case by reference to classical, neo-classical and modern economists, he indicates how reform may be introduced with a minimum of disruption, so that politicians, with an eye to the next election, may reap some results within the life of a parliament.