Have you read it yet? All 700 pages, that is. Well, if you have not, acquire a copy. The book in question was an Amazon number one bestseller and also sold out in major bookstores on its release. It was all the range on its release on March 18, 2014.

No, it is not one of the instalments of the Harry Potter series, and neither is it a book of fiction; well, some might argue that its conclusions are.

It is, in fact, a book about economic inequality written by a then little-known French economist, and has been described as being dense with data and historical examples from France, including a few literary references to Jane Austen. The economist in question is Thomas Piketty and the book is titled Capital in the Twenty-First Century.

According to an opinion piece by Tim Worstall, Piketty intended his voluminous book to tell us two things: firstly, that the concentration of wealth is going to become greater, thereby increasing inequality, and, secondly, that something needs to be done about this. Worstall, however, remains unconvinced by either of the arguments. Quite tellingly, billionaire Bill Gates – yes, he of Microsoft – told Piketty on CNBC: “‘I love your book. I care a lot about inequality but I don’t want to pay more taxes.” Gates, who is renowned for giving a large part of his wealth to charity, favours a progressive tax on high consumption instead of net wealth.

The fame that the book brought Piketty meant that he could travel the world, and he did a number of whistle- stops visits, including to South Africa, during which he brought the message of the imposition of a wealth tax. In fact, he visited South Africa in October 2015. During his visit, Piketty reminded his audience that South Africa is the most unequal country in the world. The top 10% earn 60% to 65% of the income. In the US, by comparison, their share is 40% to 50% and in Europe it is 30% to 35%. Even in Brazil, long regarded as one of the most unequal countries in the world, the income share of the top 10% is 55% to 60%, and the percentage is falling.

Piketty said “South Africa is really at the top of the class, so to speak”. According to the Davis Tax Committee, the distribution of wealth in South Africa is highly unequal, with recent empirical evidence suggesting that the Gini coefficient for wealth is about 0.95 (compared with the Gini coefficient for income of 0.67). The committee also contends that it is well established that economic inequality inhibits economic growth and undermines social, economic and political stability.

Now, the Davis Tax Committee – established by former Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan in 2013 to inquire into the role of the tax system in the promotion of inclusive economic growth, employment creation, development and fiscal sustainability – has called for written submissions on possible wealth taxes for South Africa. So, does South Africa not already impose any wealth taxes?

Well, in its analysis and research, the Davis Tax Committee needs to take recent domestic and international developments into account, particularly the long-term objectives of the National Development Plan (NDP). The committee should also take into account broad tax policy objectives (revenue raising to fund government expenditure is the primary objective of taxation) and social objectives, like building a cohesive and inclusive society, which can be partially met through a progressive tax system and the redistribution of resources.

So, do you have the answer to the question relating to South Africa and wealth taxes? According to the Davis Tax Committee’s media release of April 25, South Africa currently imposes three forms of wealth taxation, namely estate duty, transfer duty and donations tax. (If you are interested, the Davis Tax Committee published its first and second estate duty reports on its website on July 13, 2015, and August 24, 2016.)

Want to venture a guess about the extent of the revenue that is collected through wealth taxation? According to the media release, the answer is about 1% of tax revenue. If you are knowledgeable about taxation, you might question the absence of capital gains tax (CGT). Although CGT is generally considered a form of wealth tax, the Davis Tax Committee has taken the view that it is a form of income tax.

The Davis Tax Committee was specifically requested by Gordhan to inquire whether it would be appropriate to introduce additional forms of wealth taxation and the feasibility of doing so.

As a consequence, the Davis Tax Committee is inviting submissions by May 31 on the desirability and feasibility of the following possible forms of wealth tax: a land tax, a national tax on the value of property (over and above municipal rates) and an annual wealth tax. Based on the written submissions received, this will be followed by a workshop for oral submissions during June.

The obvious question is: Who is considered to be a wealthy person in South Africa? I have written about that in a previous column. Worstall’s take on this subject might well provide you with food for thought: “Our problem is that a wealth tax can either be set at a rate at which it can be paid out of income, in which case it’s not actually going to reduce wealth disparity, or it will be set at a rate at which rich people must liquidate their portfolios to pay it, and if all rich people have to do that, then who in heck can they sell to?”

Personally, I question how a deliberation on wealth tax can even seriously be contemplated in the absence of real political change, for, in the absence of political change, a wealth tax will not alter economic growth or have an impact on the overall tax burden.