Healey must beware the ripple effects of Britain’s messy tax system

A good tax system isn’t just about raising revenue, it s about encouraging the behaviours (working, saving, investing) that create a prosperous economy, writes Harry Bell With the UK’s public finances up for scrutiny at the Autumn Budget, it seems the main remedy to Healey’s diminishing fiscal headroom is one that is tried, but not necessarily true: taxing the rich. However, before we look for more ways to tax wealth, we need to make sure we aren’t discouraging people from creating it in the first place.  If we want a prosperous economy, we need people to work, save, invest, build businesses and take risks. People understand the need to pay tax, but there needs to be a reward for playing an active and productive role in boosting the country, rather than a penalty. Tax policy doesn’t just raise revenue, it changes behaviour. The government needs to think much harder about what behaviours they are encouraging, particularly when it comes to individual, isolated taxes. Pensions a