Taxation has a huge effect on our lives. Around 40% of the annual economic activity in the UK goes through the government. Taxation affects us directly by affecting the amount of resources we have and the cost of our purchases. It affects us indirectly by raising revenue which the government can use for expenditure, and by affecting the prices of everything we buy and sell.
Does the government tax too much? Or too little? Should the rich pay more in tax? How do taxes affect behaviour? What are the advantages of taxing income over consumption? Are tax havens a good thing or a bad thing?
This course explains the tax system and different ways to analyse, interpret and critique it. The course is not intended to teach you everything about the current tax rules and economic implications, but rather to provide a better understanding of the issues. Nevertheless, the course will be illustrated with data and examples primarily from the UK, with a few from the USA.
Many people assume taxation is too technical for them to understand, and when it comes to some of the literature they might be right. However, this course provides an overview of the different approaches with the lay person rather than the technical expert in mind.
In this short course we will run through the perspectives that social scientists (and sometimes philosophers) take on taxation. The course will give you the tools to understand different types of tax and to appreciate their advantages and disadvantages. No prior knowledge of economics is required, and you will not need to do any equations or computer modelling.