Barrie Davis: Treaty Economy Paradox

In a recent post (here) Professor Robert MacCulloch claimed that, for an economist, the Treaty is self-contradictory in that guaranteeing to the Maoris that they can retain their assets and treasures in exchange for granting government powers to the British created a contradictory, paradoxical quagmire.

Professor MacCulloch points out that a government has the power to tax. A tax on assets at, say, 2% of their value annually will in a few decades, appropriate the asset to the government. So, asset taxes mean that the government can take the property that was granted in the agreement.