If a Martian landed on earth and was asked at Immigration Control to pick when Reagan and Thatcher were in office based on tax policies, our Martian applicant for a visitors’ visa would get it right for the UK. Taxes as a percentage of GDP increased from 31% to 37% under the 1970s Wilson and Callaghan administrations which led to the sick man of Europe. Under Thatchernomics, tax revenue as a percentage of British GDP fell from 37% to 31% by the time Mrs Thatcher had left office.

Data extracted on 18 Oct 2015 02:10 UTC (GMT) from OECD.Stat.
Taxes as percentage of GDP actually increased in the Reagan years so Martians will not be able to identify Reaganomics based on taxes as a percentage of GDP. The Democratic Party controlled at least the House of Representatives for the entire time of the Reagan administration so any tax agenda would have been tempered. There were large cuts in marginal tax rates funded by tax base expansion. That’s the traditional meaning of tax reform. There is no actual reduction in taxes as percentage of GDP. Marginal tax rates are funded by increases in tax base or increases in indirect taxes.
As for Tony Blair as a continuation of Thatchernomics, tax revenues as a percentage of GDP stopped increasing under his watch after increasing again under John Major.
Recent Comments