One of the benefits of working in the Office of Tax Simplification (OTS) is that we receive a wide range of ideas for simplifying taxes from members of the public. Their views sometimes offer a useful additional window into tax policy.

One idea that arrived recently concerned council tax (outside the remit of the OTS). The writer recommended abolishing council tax and replacing the lost revenues with a 5% increase in the basic rate of income tax – from 20% to 25%. The problems with council tax are long-standing and well-known.