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  3. Imagine a Briton’s new year resolutions: he vows to stop smoking 20 cigarettes a day, and abandon his daily bottle of claret and

Imagine a Briton’s new year resolutions: he vows to stop smoking 20 cigarettes a day, and abandon his daily bottle of claret and

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问题     Imagine a Briton’s new year resolutions: he vows to stop smoking 20 cigarettes a day, and abandon his daily bottle of claret and nightly whisky. Confronting his enlarging gut, he may even promise to make his ten-mile round-trip commute by bike, not car.
    What admirable goals. And since this gentleman’s annual vice bill comes to around 7,500 pounds, he will be well-rewarded for his virtue even before considering the effect on his health. But the Treasury might rejoice a little less. In the fiscal year 2010-11 nearly 10% of all taxes collected came from duty on alcohol, tobacco, and fuel as well as from vehicle excise duty, a tax that falls most heavily on the least efficient cars. You may say that New Year resolutions are notoriously short-lived, but the longer-run trend still looks bad for the exchequer. Because many vices are in constant decline, so are receipts, predicts the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR).
    Smoking rates have been falling for decades, attributed partly to high taxes, and partly to public health campaigns changing social mores and a smoking ban in workplaces introduced across Britain in 2007. The government could respond by increasing sin tax rates. But when duties rise, so do the incentives to get around them, by buying abroad or on the black market. This is particularly common with cigarettes, which are easy for individual smokers to import. In 2000 non-duty consumption reached a peak of 78% , a consequence of the weak euro as well as a sudden increase in taxes of inflation plus 5%.
    Petrol taxes are leaking more quickly. As with smoking, behavior is changing; car and van mileage has fallen for four consecutive years, partly because petrol is so expensive and new vehicles have better engines. These trends, as well as the rise of electric and hybrid cars, are forecast to compress receipts from 1.8% of GDP in 2010 to just 1.1% in 2030.
    There are, of course, advantages to Britons giving up their filthy habits. Smoking is the leading cause of preventable illness and premature death in Britain. It cost the National Health Service more than 5 billion pounds a year in 2005-06, some 5.5% of its budget at the time, according to an Oxford University study. But any benefit to the NHS may be short-lived. Those who do not perish from diseases associated with smoking are likely to die more slowly of age-related illnesses.
    In moral terms, a decline in sin tax receipts suggests a job well done. But in fiscal terms, a hole is a hole. As the OBR sees it, falling Treasury income means Britons will be getting, in effect, an unannounced tax cut. Other taxes could therefore rise without leaving people worse off in aggregate. The maths makes sense. For the virtuous, though, being clobbered with new taxes may seem a rather poor reward.
According to the last paragraph, in moral terms, a decline in sin tax receipts suggests that______.
选项 A、government’s job to curb unhealthy consumption is fulfilled
B、government’s job to relieve the tax burden of British people is fulfilled
C、government’s job to advocate public health campaign is fulfilled
D、government’s job to elevate the moral level of British people is fulfilled
答案A
解析 根据题干中的关键词，in moral terms锁定文章最后一段前两句话。“In moral terms，a decline in sin tax receipts suggests a job well done．But in fiscal terms，a hole is a hole．”在道德层面上，恶行税的减少是一件好事，它代表政府通过税收来抑制不良消费的目的已经达到；但是在财政收入上来讲，税收的减少必须通过其他途径来填补。在了解了这层意思之后，不难判断本题的正确答案应该选[A]。[B]选项是无关干扰项。[C]选项利用public health campaign设置干扰，虽然政府应该大力宣传健康理念，但是却并不是本文讨论的内容，本文讨论的是政府税收调节和恶行税收减少之间的关系。[D]选项利用moral一词设置干扰，恶行税收减少只能说明英国人生活方式更健康了，并不能说明英国人道德水准提高了。
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