Trickle down

All winter we have been manoeuvring, on our Friday delivery round, around gangs of construction workers, dumper trucks, telescopic lifts, pallets of materiels and mud. All devoted to a single house. I cannot imagine how many zeroes are on the end of the bill. It is all done and tidied now, returned to rural village charm

Around the same time, we were listening to Dale Vince, self-made founder-owner of the Ecotricity energy retailer, making the case that people like him, who have a net worth of more than £10 million, should pay a 2% annual tax on the remainder. In this age of oligarchy, we have got used to millions being mere trifles, and billions being the only units that matter. I was surprised that there are only 20,000 people in UK who would pay the tax. He was compelling on the principle, but took a rapid step back when asked about the practical implementation. As we have just heard at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre in Stratford, 'aye, there's the rub'. (Yes, 5 films and one Hamlet in one week; my head is exploding)

Would our refurbished homeowner be one of them, I wonder. Might they have been compelled to choose a less monumental water-feature for their new-made home? Would the sacrifice be worth it?