Why not just focus on running the country rather than get obsessed about tax ? This silly game of cutting 1p in £ off Income Tax as Brown did just to add another 1% to NIC a year later is stupid.

The Tories should make NO tax pledges.....just do what is necessary to build a safe, secure, stable country. Dutch Auctions get boring and are illusions.

The problem is Letwin .He may be very clever and a very nice man and even a decent politician at the back room, theoretical level -but as a politician in a front line,high profile position, he is a dud.

What is worrying is that Howard appears not to understand this.

In the 80's tax decreases led to increases in tax revenues in Britain and the US.

The Tories must cut tax, because the country is suffering at the moment because of the ridiculously high taxes levelled at us by Labour.

I would be absolutely disgusted if a conservative government didn't reduce petrol tax. But tax in general needs to come down as that will increase growth.

But tax in general needs to come down as that will increase growth."

Yes Reagan proved that you can finance faster growth through DEBT, but one day you have to pay it back....and if you cut taxes now you will boost Chinese growth as you suck in more imports.
If you cut taxes you will need high interest rates or import controls to avoid a currency collapse

Letwin is a dangerous clown. Michael Howard needs to give him a sharp talking to, or get rid of him.

If he hasn't realised yet that most people have now seen through the "more money = better services" rubbish, then he isn't up to the job.

In any case, how does this square with the proposal to make tax freedom day a public holiday? If the day never gets any earlier in the year, isn't that rather a hoof-in-mouth situation?

Mrs. Thatcher understood the Laffer curve; so, in a different context, did John F. Kennedy. It shouldn't be beyond Mr. Letwin.

Laffer Curve is total balderdash which is why they had to have the Plaza Accord after Reagan's lunacy, and depreciate the US Dollar. Do this again and the US might pay a heavy price as oil gets priced in other than Dollars and China stops buying US Treasury Stock.

You either pay taxes or live on credit; and the US is a credit junkie......how does Britain finance a £9.7 bn trade gap ? Time to put 17.5% VAT on housing to slow down this import binge.

If the Tories are not keen to lower tax they are nothing. This taxation-phobia running through the Tory Party is most alarming. They need to bring in a clear plan to cut spending and taxation. That is what Conservatives are suppose to do.

Trace the Laffer curve isn't balderdash, but what you write certainly is...

The Laffer Curve strikes me as being inevitably true since if work is taxed at 100% no one will do any and tax revenues will plunge to zero.

The problem, in a dismally scientific sense, is that no economist has gone off and found an example. Perhaps Mr. Brown will fix this.

"You either pay taxes or live on credit..."

'Trace' left out the only viable and important alternative (deliberately I suspect).

So for his/her benefit: you can also stop government spending.

For my benefit no ! Simply that Brown borrowed an extra 4p in £ Income Tax (=£10 bn) yesterday which will require tax increases after the next election.

Britain will be like Germany in two years time......Brown is taking a bridging loan until after the election when they will raise taxes and cut spending........by increasing student tuition fees and means-testing health care perhaps ?

Ah... so David Carr lets the cat out of the bag! Reducing taxes has nothing to do with raising growth (a fallacy in itself). It's all about reducing burdens on the rich and the poor can go to hell.

Conservative inhumanity never ceases to amaze me!

Rubbish. The only inhumane politicians are socialists how would rather punish the middle classes for daring to work hard than try and help the poor.

Its socialists who look on anyone who drives a car as sub-human.

Lowering taxes is about doing whats best for the country. Inreasing taxes is about punishing the well off for the sake of it and stuff the consequences to the country. Socialism appeals to peoples lowest common denominators - spite,envy and greed.

Running a stable economic policy is what matters. One of the reasons Britain declined was the failure to invest in infrastructure and the tax-fetishists.....what matters is how tax is levied, who pays it, what its level is......but it should neither be increased nor decreased as a policy pledge.

With a £9.7 bn trade gap and huge over-consumption bills have to be paid......it is time for the consumption binge started under Thatcher to end......she squandered N Sea Oil and blew billions on the poll tax, then the Council Tax needed VAT raising from 15% to 17.5% to subsidise Council Tax in 1992......and Council Tax is exploding again because it is regressive

Britain is a country where it is profitable to be very rich, and terrible to be in any decile above average earnings and below high-earnings.

People are exponentially funnier when they're in rant mode.