Henry George, a 19th-century American eco¬nomist, believed that taxes should be levied only on the value of land, not on labor or capital. This “single tax”, he asserted in his book, PROGRESS AND POVERTY, would end unemployment, poverty, inflation and inequality. Many countries levy some tax on land or property values, although George’s single tax has never been fully implemented. This is mainly because of fears that it would drive down land prices too much or discourage efforts to improve the quality (that is, the economic value) of land. George addressed this concern by arguing that the tax should be levied only against the value of “unimproved” land. Certainly, a land tax has obvious advantages: it is simple and cheap to levy; evasion is all but impossible; and it penalizes owners who do not put their land to work.