The taxation of business profits

Abstract

Almost every state today imposes a tax on income as a basic source of revenue and the more highly organised states are virtually dependent upon its yield in order to carry on government. Gladstone's idea of keeping it as an iron reserve with which to fight wars?he held that 5d. in the # was a just rate of tax?is gone forever. In his day the tax brought in about one-sixth of the British revenue : today it is the source of almost one-half that revenue.