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In Germany, the globalization-critical organisation Attac has launched a renewed push for a wealth tax, aiming to address growing economic inequality in the country. The petition, titled "Tax the Rich," has gathered significant attention, with over 70,000 signatures as of the day of submission, surpassing the 30,000 signature threshold for consideration by the Petitions Committee.
The initiators of Attac argue that the current tax preference for the ultra-rich leads to increasing inequality. In Germany, the top 10 percent of the population own over 60 percent of the total wealth, while the bottom 50 percent own about two percent. To address this issue, Attac's petition proposes a progressive wealth tax on wealth over a million euros, with a maximum of 20 percent for billionaires.
Julia Elwing from Attac's "Tax the Rich" campaign stated that they are curious to see how the ruling parties will react to their arguments. The petition's ability to gather such a large number of signatures has intensified public and political debate on wealth distribution and the taxation of the rich.
The movement reflects broader international trends where wealth taxes have returned as a subject of debate amid concerns about rising inequality and the fiscal capacity of governments post-pandemic. Last year, the European Central Bank began publishing the "distribution-based wealth balance sheet," which presents the wealth distribution in Europe, including large fortunes.
In 2024, Germany had the fourth-largest number of billionaires worldwide. With a million-euro exemption per person, over 99 percent of people in Germany would not be affected by the wealth tax.
The trend continues due to the preferential taxation of capital income compared to labor income and consumption in Germany. The petition's progress has placed wealth taxation back into public and political focus, renewing calls for fiscal reforms targeting wealth concentration.
Although the exact legislative outcomes or Bundestag responses are not detailed in the available information, the petition's ability to gather enough signatures to potentially force a parliamentary discussion marks a significant advancement in addressing economic disparities in Germany. The petition can be seen as part of a wider socio-political push challenging existing tax structures and advocating for stricter taxation on the richest individuals to address economic disparities.
- The renewed push for a wealth tax by Attac in Germany is rooted in their belief that the current tax structure favors the ultra-rich, contributing to economic inequality.
- The ongoing debate on wealth taxation in Germany, as fostered by the Attac petition, is part of an international trend, with fiscal reforms targeting wealth concentration being advocated to address rising inequality concerns.
