Ross Greer says Scotland needs a mansion tax. Could he have a point, asks Mark Smith

Ross Greer of the Scottish Greens is the man who called Winston Churchill a mass murderer. Ross Greer of the Scottish Greens is also the man who, when asked repeatedly on the radio the other day whether Isla Bryson is a man or a woman, replied that “Isla Bryson is a rapist”. But dear diary, today is the day I find myself agreeing with Ross Greer about something. I suppose it had to happen at some point.

The remarks by Mr Greer I find myself agreeing with concern the idea of a mansion tax, although we should probably clarify the description. To someone like me brought up in the 70s, the word mansion means the sort of place Bruce Wayne or Lady Penelope lived in: a proper big posh house with wings. But the plans Labour have drawn up for a mansion tax in England kick in at £2.5m which in some swanky parts of London wouldn’t get you much more than a two-bedroom flat. Granted: it’s a huge amount of money and would buy you a lot of house in most of the country, but mansion is probably not the right word.

The other problem with Labour’s plans is one which Mr Greer has identified: it won’t actually raise much money in the grand scheme of things (about £400million by 2029/30). The co-leader of the Scottish Greens is the sort of man who likes to squeeze the same pips Denis Healey liked to squeeze, so I’m guessing his solution would be to increase the tax further. The rest of us, however, have heard of the Laffer Curve and there’s already evidence of buyers and sellers looking to dodge the mansion tax by agreeing asking prices just below the bands laid out in the Budget. We’ll need to wait to see what happens but chances are the Treasury may introduce their new property taxes and end up worse off in revenue terms.

But there’s something in what Mr Greer says all the same. What he tells us is that........

© Herald Scotland