Description
Book Synopsis''An invaluable primer to some of the underlying tensions behind contemporary political debate'' Financial Times
It has always been an important part of British self-image to see the United Kingdom as an ancient, organic and sensibly managed place, in striking contrast to the convulsions of other European countries. Yet, as Julian Hoppit makes clear in this fascinating and surprising book, beneath the complacent surface the United Kingdom has in fact been in a constant, often very tense argument with itself about how it should be run and, most significantly, who should pay for what.
The book takes its argument from an eighteenth century cartoon which shows the central state as the ''Dreadful Monster'', gorging itself at the dinner table on all the taxes it can grab. Meanwhile the ''Poor Relations'' - Scotland, Wales and Ireland, both poor because of tax but also poor in the sense of needing special treatment - are viewed in London as an endless ''drain on
Trade Review
An engaging account of three centuries of the UK's economic history ... Hoppit outlines an agenda for reform. -- Jonathan Portes * Prospect *
A meticulous fiscal narrative of the union with Scotland, the 19th century equivalent with Ireland, and devolution of taxes more recently ... [Hoppit shows] the importance of taxation to history and contemporary politics, providing an invaluable primer to some of the underlying tensions behind contemporary political debate. -- Chris Giles * Financial Times *
Hoppit shows how the history of financial relations within the United Kingdom is profoundly relevant to the current constitutional debate ... Hoppit steers the reader deftly through complex historical statistics ... provides much useful ammunition. -- Vernon Bogdanor * Daily Telegraph *
