About LVT - Land Value Tax Campaign

What are the practical barriers to LVT?

Written on 20 May 2009. Posted in Valuations.

CAN YOU HELP? A student writing a dissertation about LVT has asked for information about the practical barriers to its implementation. If you would like your comments to be passed on, please contact via the webmaster.

An alarm call to LVT advocates

Written on 14 February 2009. Posted in Efficiency.

Fred Harrison, the forthright and veteran LVT campaigner, has an important message for all of us in the light of the present economic crisis. “The fate of the 21st century will be sealed by the decisions made by governments over the next two or three years. At the risk of appearing to sensationalise, I must state that, in my humble view, the fate of Western civilisation hangs in the balan...

Wigmore Hall secures its future

Written on 24 January 2009. Posted in What is land?.

The other day, one of our members picked up a leaflet about the Wigmore Hall, a small London classical music venue where, amongst other things, performing musicians make their public debut. The leaflet explained:- “In 2005 we successfully negotiated the purchase of a 250-year leasehold of Wigmore Hall for £3.1 million. Owning the lease means that we can plan ahead, secure in our own home,...

The practicalities of LVT valuation

Written on 24 January 2009. Posted in Valuations.

The practicalities of LVT valuation are discussed in these two reports by the valuers on the valuation exercises carried out by Hector Wilks and Co, Chartered Surveyors, in 1964 and 1973. The valuation list produced was of annual values and the reports explain how what often dismissed as too difficult was actually done. Report on 1964 valuation Report on 1973 valuation

LVT wouldn’t work – people say

Written on 2 January 2009. Posted in Efficiency.

This is an extract from a discussion on the Guardian’s “Comment is Free” I’m not convinced by the argument. To start with, you are describing a method of taxation. It’s not clear why “poverty and unemployment; widening divisions between rich and poor; boom-slump cycles; housing shortages; inadequate infrastructure; and damage to the environment” will be...

Can the state protect human rights?

Written on 13 December 2008. Posted in Natural justice.

Prompted by the economic crisis and the sixtieth anniversary of the UN declaration, human rights have been the subject of several pieces arguing that states should have a stronger role to ensure that people’s rights are protected. But human rights are not guaranteed by defining them as such, rather they arise by defining the corresponding duties which confer those rights. Once the duties of...

Work in progress

Written on 3 December 2008. Posted in What we do.

It is good that various groups supporting the introduction of Land Value Taxation are getting together to see if they can put forward a common theme in the present climate. They are joined in their common understanding that the cure to poverty and income inequalities is to return to the community what the community creates and to remove taxes from productive processes. What divides them is only...

Campaigning for LVT – some thoughts

Written on 29 November 2008. Posted in Valuations.

There is a more interest in promoting LVT in the present state of the economy, and quite right too. But campaigners need to be very clear what they are promoting and why, and to be able to defend their position. I could not argue against some of the attacks that can be made against LVT on capital values and on no account should we be advocating Capital Value assessment.

Is Libertarianism dead?

Written on 28 November 2008. Posted in Natural justice.

Advocates of our policy often find themselves in conflict with both “left” and “right”. The discussion below, which arose out of an article on Libertarianism, is an example of the latter. I wrote… There is just one flaw in the libertarian argument but it is fatal. It fails on the question of land rights. Nozick, one of the prophets of modern libertarianism, skirts over...

Isn’t a Flat Tax better?

Written on 21 November 2008. Posted in Valuations.

More arguments against LVT come from an advocate of the Flat Tax. The author suggests a 20% flat rate above £20k, Why 20%? Why 20k allowance? Would that be the same for a big company as a one-man business? What counts as deductable expenses? It isn’t quite as simple as it looks at first glance. The objector raises some complex and interesting points (below, italics) which are here answered.

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