More than 130 MEPs have signed a petition calling for
the introduction of a tax on the wealth of the "ultra-rich" on an international scale
to participate in the "ecological and social transition".
"What we managed to achieve for the multinationals, we must now do for the rich", write French MEP Aurore Lalucq (Socialists and Democrats, left) and economist Gabriel Zucman, initiators of the campaign, in an article published today in the Le Monde newspaper.
The landmark agreement for a minimum global tax of 15% on multinational companies is expected to take effect this year.
THE PROPOSAL
"Our proposal is simple: introduce a progressive tax on the wealth of the ultra-rich on an international scale to reduce inequalities and help finance the investments needed for the ecological and social transition", explained the MEP and the economist, expert on tax evasion and taxation of high incomes.
The authors mention the idea of
a 1.5% tax on assets of at least 50 million euros
, but say the exact level of the tax should be decided "collectively and democratically".
Lalucq and Zucman call on the OECD and the United Nations to start negotiations on the tax and urge the EU to act.
In the article they argue that in 2018 Elon Musk, at the time the second richest man in the world, "didn't pay a penny in federal taxes" and that in France "the 370 richest families are actually taxed only 2 or 3% about".
The petition was signed mainly by green and left-wing MEPs, a dozen economists and international NGOs including Oxfam.