The idea of fair taxation can be reassessed by taking another look at the history of economic theory of tax, especially the British view. Original discussions of fair taxation centred on the benefit principle and its equivalence with ability-to-pay, a point on which Recardo refined the ideas of Petty an Smith. The ability-to-pay doctrine came into its own with classic utilitarianism. It started with Bentham and the principle of equal sacrifice and was taken up by John Stuart Mill and Henry Sidgwick. In conclusion, we shall propose going beyond the limits of the standard public economy.
