Prepare for tax hikes

Britain is growing – but the tax take isn’t. Why not? And what does it portend? James Ferguson reports.

Britain is growing but the tax take isn't. Why not?And what does it portend? James Ferguson reports.

UK economists face an enigma several, in fact. Britain has strong GDP growth and low unemployment. But we also have zero growth in productivity, or real (after-inflation) wages, or growth per person. And how can the government spend the equivalent of 43% of GDP (high by historical standards), yet food banks still exist?

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James Ferguson qualified with an MA (Hons) in economics from Edinburgh University in 1985. For the last 21 years he has had a high-powered career in institutional stock broking, specialising in equities, working for Nomura, Robert Fleming, SBC Warburg, Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein and Mitsubishi Securities.