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Reeves Needs a Lesson on Tax

October 23, 2025 39:17 Arthur Laffer The Daily T

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Arthur Laffer joins The Telegraph’s Daily T podcast to explain why taxing income, employment, and profit discourages exactly the behavior it targets, the same logic behind speeding tickets and cigarette taxes, and what that means for Rachel Reeves’ UK budget.

"We tax speeders on the highways to get them to stop speeding. We tax cigarettes to get people to stop smoking. Why then do we tax people who earn income? Why do we tax people who employ other people? Why do we tax companies that make wonderful products at low cost and make lots of profits? Don't for a moment think that the same consequences don't befall taxes on income, employment, and profits as they do on speeders and on smokers."

— Laffer, Arthur event 2025

payments Taxation emoji_events Incentives show_chart Laffer Curve policy Economic Policy

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"If you tax people who work, and you pay people who don't work, do not be surprised if you have a lot of people not working."

— Laffer, Arthur event 2025

payments Taxation emoji_events Incentives show_chart Laffer Curve account_balance Welfare State

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