Tax the rich: Let them contribute to society

We all work hard to be able to save or have a little extra to spend at the end of the month. But the ultra rich are just seeing their wealth grow, without contributing to society.

Working people are the backbone of the European economy. And because of these contributions, we are able to pay for schools and hospitals, roads and public transport. We are the true engines of our economy.

But right now, a handful of people are sitting on billions of euros. We need to make sure that those ultra rich can no longer get away with profiting at the cost of all of us. They need to pay their fair share in taxes.

And we just have the plan for that.

Spain took the lead in Europe and introduced a temporary tax on excessive wealth. But what if all EU countries were to introduce that same tax? Our study explored the potential of this scenario, with staggering results. All EU countries combined would collect 213.2 billion euro.

And, we all know that on top of not paying their fair share, the ultra-rich are very good at hiding their money (Panama papers anyone?). So we also looked at how much money we could retrieve if the ultra-rich didn’t hide their money offshore. Another shocking result: 59.5 billion euro.

This would bring the total to 272.8 billion euro. So if the top 0.5% played by our rules, EU countries could have over a quarter of a trillion extra euro every year.

When we make billionaires actually pay what they owe in taxes, we have the resources to prevent cut backs in social expenditures. We can actually invest in more and affordable childcare, in affordable housing and in a climate transition that will benefit all.

It would leave more money in the pockets of those hard working Europeans.

It would foster a society that works for the many, not for the few.

Are you with us?

🍿 The first 500 people that signed up received a free online ticket to watch the documentary Breaking Social, exploring the possibilities of overcoming injustice and corruption. A film about reimagining the building blocks of our societies and igniting seeds of hope that live within each of us.