Experts line up to challenge tax discontent

CPD Fellows have won us exposure in international publication, The Economist. No less than three articles about Australian tax policy  in the respected magazine last week benefited from the expertise of  John Quiggin (pictured) and Fred Argy.

The first one, published online, directly references and links to CPD:

The Economist, 6 July: Laying 22 economists end to end
The Economist, 7 July: Tithes of Discontent
The Economist, 7 July: Underland revenue

In principle a tax on rents should not distort miners’ behaviour, because it only grabs profits above what they require to keep doing what they’re doing. The idea is an old one, with broad application even in countries not blessed with the world’s largest reserves of profitably accessible brown coal or its second largest reserves of iron ore… With this in mind, 22 economists signed an open letter in May 2010 calling for a national tax on Australia’s resource rents, which would replace the production-based royalties charged by Australia’s states. The letter was organised by John Quiggin, a fellow at the Centre for Policy Development and the University of Queensland.