How the Empire was built.

To: The Economist:

Sir,

The right analogy (Leader, 15 March) is not New York's loss of the bond market, but the flight of private equity to St James's after Sarbanes-Oxley. It is the uncertainty and threatened disclosure that will frighten away the super rich; the £30,000 levy they will not notice, but may drive out highly skilled city workers. If equity is the object then why not get rid of the real anomaly whereby HMRC claims extraterritorial powers over Britons? Let anyone make money abroad without question and bring it home to spend it. That's how the Empire was built.

Yours faithfully

--
Guy E S Herbert