In the past the burden of taxation has impacted on our competitiveness, retarded our economic growth and reduced the incentive to work. The system was permitted by successive Administrations to continue to develop in a hotch potch fashion. Taxation was frequently invoked in a type of fire brigade manner to target contingencies as they arose. Some of these contingencies occurred on a yearly basis and others on a half yearly basis. There was no clear long-term strategy to use taxation as an instrument for direction of the economy. The system turned into an unwieldy quango, adding bits, taking off bits and adding more bits from year to year. It was riddled with anomalies, which no one will dispute. It was extremely complex and, inevitably, blatantly lacking in transparency. Among its many adverse effects, including ongoing disenchantment among the taxpaying public, particularly the PAYE sector, it inevitably contributed to high unemployment.