INTERNATIONAL COMPARISONS OF TAXATIONThe people of many countries think that their taxes are too high. In Britain people think that the burden of taxation is heavier here than in any other country. Whether this is true or not, it is a serious problem. To be sure that one is exposed to oppressive taxation may result in seriously impairing the incentive to work harder. If such an idea is widespread among those whose economic contribution to the community is most vital, the danger to the economy is very real. Recent studies of taxation in four major Western Countries (France, W. Germany, Sweden and USA) support the view that the tax system in Britain seems to be out of line with everybody else. International comparisons of taxation can complicate what is already a complex subject. Problems of definition and different methods of data collection and presentation mean that comparisons can never be strictly valid in the statistician's sense. Nevertheless, there are a number of aspects of the tax system in each country which can be examined in attempt to draw parallels. This study attempts to collect together some facts, and particularly figures, to help in putting Britain's tax system into international perspective. The taxation studies of France, Sweden, West Germany and the United States, which form the basis of this paper, were completed in 1966. They were made on the basis of the latest available statistics at the time of the research. For the sake of comistency, UK comparisons have been based on comparable years. There have been some fundamental changes in British taxation since then, and its overall weight has been increased, Nonetheless this study is a valuable background to the up-to-date information which is regularly provided in Notes on Current Politics. (from "Britain's Taxes. Some International Comparisons")
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