How can Rachel Reeves fill the black hole in her Budget ? It’s simple: tax the rich .

At least, that is the argument made by many on the left of politics. A wealth tax, higher council tax on expensive properties, a crackdown on tax-free pension savings, a rise in capital gains tax – the suggested methods may vary, but the end result is the same.

This is an understandable instinct. The pressure for ever-higher public spending is unlikely to let up any time soon, given how unpopular the “austerity” era now is in voters’ minds.

And borrowing more is not a realistic option, given that interest rates are so much higher than they were a few years ago. So it is little wonder that so many Labour MPs, progressive think-tanks and indeed ordinary people would like to see the state go a

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