Amidst  the  debates  about  ‘austerity’,  a  number  of  vital  debates  in public finance have been sidelined. Since the reductions in government  spending  –  small  though  they  have  been  so  far  —  have been designed solely to reduce the government’s borrowing requirement,  there  has  been  little  discussion  of  whether  the  size  of  the  state  should  be  reduced  in  order  to  facilitate  long-run  reductions in the burden of taxation. This  book  traces  the  history  of  the  growth  of  the  size  of  the  state  over  the  last  100  years  whilst  also  making  international  comparisons. There is a particular focus on recent and projected future developments which shows that, though the total level of government spending has not decreased significantly in recent years,  there  has  been  a  big  redirection  of  spending  from  some  areas to others.The  authors  then  examine  the  evidence  on  the  relationship  between taxation and economic growth. As well as reviewing recent literature, they also undertake new modelling which shows that higher taxes are detrimental for growth.In  the  final  part  of  the  book,  the  whole  UK  tax  system  is reconsidered in a proper economic framework. The UK has one of the world’s most complex tax systems, and its incoherence has increased over the last five years. Sweeping reforms are proposed to  the  system  which  would  involve  abolishing  around  20  taxes,  and the development of a simple, predictable tax system based on principles that should gain wide acceptance