If taxes, then taxes

Give everyone what you owe him: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honour, then honour. (Rom 13:7).

I've been thinking a lot about this verse recently, especially with the news overnight that the Prime Minister has vetoed a "Tobin tax" on financial institutions. Paul wrote this verse in the context of a single empire (predominantly European) where there was a relatively uniform system of taxation. The choice was whether to pay the tax or not. In today's global economy, the situation is rather different. If as a large company or wealthy individual you don't like the taxation system in one part of the world, then you move to another. Hence the arguments about whether the 50% top rate of tax is in fact counter-productive (see here) - although some recent research has indicated the highest rate of taxpayers may in fact be paying more (but this could be just a "blip").

So what's wrong with moving your wealth to another part of the world? There are a couple of answers to this question. Firstly, it means that governments end up raising money from those sectors of the society least able to afford it. Indirect taxation such as VAT tends to hit hardest those with the least spending power. Equally the various national lotteries have a similar effect. It's also hard to escape the conclusion that various reforms to the benefit system have also in part been driven by the need to claw back money.

Secondly, there is a basic issue of social responsibility. It seems to me there is a big and as yet not fully worked out debate to be had about the appropriate level of taxation large companies and wealthy individuals should pay in this country.  To some extent, those who pay will always say it is too much, and those who watch them pay will say it is too little. Beyond the campaigns and the tented protesters, I believe there needs to be an informed and reasonable debate between all stakeholders in society about what is fundamentally a moral issue.

At the end of the day we are coming to the question of power. As I've argued before, there are unanswered issues about how UK plc is held to account. (The BBC documentary about the Royal Bank of Scotland at the weekend highlighted this question once again). We still tend to think of governments as having the ultimate power over our lives, but - for good or ill - this power often is checked or restricted by the power of public limited companies. We urgently need a 21st century answer to this question, rooted in God-given wisdom.

So how does Rom 13:7 apply to us today?