On 7th July Rt Hon Vincent Cable, chief economic spokesperson for the Liberal Democrat Party gave the annual lecture to the Institute of Fiscal Studies. Dr. Cable gave an insightful review of the current economic situation. Amongst his proposals for counter-cyclical measures was a transfer of business rates from property to land.

"In principle it should also be possible to apply property taxes in a countercyclical manner. Stamp duty already operates counter cyclically since falling house prices lead to lower duty paid and lower rates.

However, unfortunately, Britain does not have a national tax based on current property values, of the kind operating in Denmark, based on annual revaluations.

One useful counter cyclical measure would be to shift the tax base of business rates to land values – including unused land – increasing the cost of holding land banks in booms but easing the burden in slumps which are transmitted to land prices."

A new political novel from John Stewart

The President goes missing. Every corner of the White House has been searched and double-checked, without success. The Vice President is in Europe, so the decision of whether to go public or not falls upon the Chief of Staff. Just then the phone rings: a journalist has spotted the President sitting on a park bench near the Lincoln Memorial, his only disguise a baseball cap pulled well down over his eyes.

The Commander in Chief of the most powerful military force in the world has acted strangely and explanations are sought, but the President is far from apologetic. It is he who is asking questions.

This incident, which occurs about fifteen months from the end of the President’s first term, provokes a change of attitude. This worries his campaign manager who fears he is throwing away his chances of re-election, but more sinisterly, it provokes the opposition of vested interests who fear their privileges are under threat.

But the President is convinced he has seen a way to make a real change, to cut through the tired arguments of both Left and Right and heal the rifts in society. In a carefully crafted dialogue, John Stewart spells out the implications and the reaction of press and public.

The interest in real change aroused by the US presidential primaries makes this book timely on both sides of the Atlantic. The reform the President seeks to introduce in the USA could be just as relevant for the UK.

A New Model of the Economy by Brian Hodgkinson

This book offers a radical revision of modern economic theory. Its starting point is the existing body of both micro and macro economics, as developed in such textbooks as Economics by Begg, Fischer and Dombusch and Positive Economics by Lipsey and Chrystal.

Following a similar framework to these books, it adjusts the whole range of theory by introducing some new concepts and other earlier ones that have been much neglected in the economic thought of the past century. These are related especially to the fundamental part played by land, in it proper sense of all natural resources available on the earth, the significance of credit, especially through the banking system, and the crucial impact of the method of taxation.

Now published and available @ £30.00 HB from Shepheard-Walwyn (Publishers) Ltd. 15 Alder Road, London, SW14 8ER. www.shepheard-walwyn.co.uk

For a recent review by Mark Braund in the Guardian see http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2008/sep/20/economy.recession

The Henry George Foundation is an independent economic and social justice think tank and public education group with offices in London. We deal in cutting-edge ideas, exploring and promoting principles for a just and prosperous society and a healthy environment.

Our broad concern is the development of sound relationships between the citizen, our communities (from the local to the global) and our shared natural and common resources. These relationships are manifested through economics and the social sciences, and it is here that our specific focus lies.

We are active on three broad fronts - research, education, and advocacy - searching for and putting forward practical and innovative solutions to seemingly intractable social problems. The Henry George Foundation has the aim of putting people at the heart of economics.