France is under pressure to pass a spending Bill by the end of the year to rein in its deficit and soaring debt. Read more at straitstimes.com. Read more at straitstimes.com.

A left-wing bloc made up of the Socialist, Communist, Green parties and the hard-left France Unbowed had proposed a minimum 2 per cent tax on wealth over €100 million (S$150 million), dubbed the “Zucman tax” after the French economist who devised it.

Mr Lecornu expressed his “profound disagreement” with the wealth-tax proposal, insisting there was no such thing as a “miracle tax”.

  • dubyakay@lemmy.caEnglish
    11·
    2 days ago

    I think the problem is that it’s a flat 2% in the proposal. Instead it should be progressive, based on the assessed wealth of the individual and their family. And make it go as high as 99% on obscene amounts. No one needs to hoard 400 billion eur.

    I’m know wealth is not as dry cut, but I’m sure economists could figure out something better if they cared to.

    • Ziggurat@jlai.luEnglish
      8·
      2 days ago

      That proposal is already pretty watered down, especially in the latest proposition. I don’t care that your net worth is made of company stock and not in cash. We, commoners, pay way more than 2% of our net worth in tax, why such a low tax rate is not acceptable for the super rich?

    • TheMetaleek@sh.itjust.worksEnglish
      5·
      2 days ago

      It should, but the point I think you’re missing is that, even in this VERY light version purposefully calculated so that those ultra rich households still increase in wealth with the tax, just a little slower, it was heavily criticized in virtually every media, and still was not voted by the lawmakers. Something more drastic than this as you and a lot suggest would not even have a chance at being discussed on…

    • Evil_Shrubbery@thelemmy.clubEnglish
      4·
      2 days ago

      Yeah, the proposal was a joke an effort to start the movement. And it still failed.
      (Imagine if you get a billon a year & they proposed a 2% tax - not much difference for you but if you invest only 1% of one year into lobbyists, that’s a budget of 10m that is spent on for full-time employees working on how to not make the tax increase happen. And ofc bribes & extortions.)

      With such speed of wealth concentration to remain a society without kings an actual wealth tax is needed, directly in company profits, and on personal income. Which includes closing tax loopholes & monitoring intra-group wealth transfers.

      Besides, the alternative is to legally nationalize all the wealth of a few select individuals, like a purge common to after-revolution times (and literally end the debt crisis). That or be enslaved.
      ^ If that kind off public discussion would be going on billionaires would be lobbying for a gigantic tax increase on their wraith.