It's enough to take your breath away

Recharge is loath to mention this, given governments' love of taxing anything that moves (or, in the case of death duties, even those who don't).

But a scientist has calculated the taxable value of the air we breathe, using the current price for CO2 allowances in the EU Emissions Trading Scheme.

John Thornes, a professor at England's Birmingham University, estimates that the tax would be £65-75 ($105-121) a year, based on people breathing about 15 cubic metres of air a day.

Thornes