Barack Obama last week put forward a package of tax increases to pay for a proposed $447bn jobs programme. The most controversial proposal is that no one making more than $1m a year should pay a smaller share of his income in taxes than a middle class family pays. This is popularly called the Buffett Rule, after the billionaire Warren Buffett, who has long complained that he pays a lower tax rate than his secretary, and famously came out in public recently asking to pay more.

Republicans were quick to denounce the proposal as “class warfare”, and to argue that low taxes on the wealthy are essential to boost the economy in these difficult times. This echoes the debate in Britain where 20 prominent economists from the left and right sparked a nationwide debate after writing to the Financial Times suggesting that the top 50 per cent rate of tax, introduced in the 2010 tax year, should be lowered to encourage investment and hiring.

But polls show wide public support. A Gallup poll found that two-thirds of Americans favour raising taxes on those making more than $250,000 a year. While I spent many years working for Republican administrations, one of whose core principles was low taxes, I believe Mr Obama is on solid ground asking the rich to pay more.