Report
Oxfam-Demopolis: A tax on the super-rich would net €16 billion per year
Most Italians support a tax on the top 0.1% of the population. ‘We’re talking about a tax that would not burden anybody less well-off, but only the very top of the pyramid.’
Taxing the vast estates of the richest 0.1 percent of the Italian population – about 50,000 people with net assets of over €5.4 million – would net €16 billion per year into the state’s coffers. According to the Demopolis and Oxfam Italia survey presented at the Senate on Thursday, 7 out of 10 Italians among the 4,000 interviewed said they agreed with the tax proposed.
The €16 billion would cover no less than two-thirds of the budget law the Meloni government is currently struggling with. This money would make it possible to avoid cuts to public spending and would allow reinvestments in social services, supporting wage policies while avoiding the commitment of substantial resources to cutting the tax wedge. It bears repeating: over 10 years, an extra €160 billion would come in beyond what is coming in now.
Among those surveyed, the proposal got the support of 94% of Green and Left Alliance voters, 88% of Democratic Party voters and 86% of Five Star Movement voters. Among the supporters of the current majority, 49% of Fratelli d'Italia voters were in favor, together with 45% of Forza Italia voters and 43% of Lega voters. This is proof that such a proposal, appropriately formulated, could cut through the violent polarization that arises around taxes as a subject.
“People are growing more and more tired of being told that there are not enough resources to cut down waiting lists in health care or to give stable employment to the precarious staff in schools,” said Mikhail Maslennikov, policy advisor on economic justice at Oxfam Italy. “We’re talking about a tax that would not burden anybody less well-off, but only the very top of the pyramid, a social group that has seen an increase in its share of wealth in the last 30 years.”
“For years, we have been proposing to go after large and very large estates,” Peppe de Cristofaro (Green Left Alliance) pointed out. ”In Italy, a negative narrative has taken hold that has made people believe that the wealth tax we proposed would hit small savers or salaries. None of that is true. This must become the first point on the program of the next coalition running against Meloni's neoliberal right.”
“This survey should be recommended reading for the majority’s senators, who are currently busy advocating for tax amnesty upon tax amnesty with the amendment to the Omnibus decree,” said Senator Cristina Tajani, leader of the PD group in the Finance Committee.
The Oxfam campaign for the citizens' initiative law on the taxation of large estates has collected 300,000 signatures across Europe. You can add your signature here: https://www.oxfamitalia.org/lagrandericchezza/
Originally published at https://ilmanifesto.it/oxfam-demopolis-16-miliardi-allanno-dalle-tasse-sui-super-ricchi on 2024-09-27