The tax-to-GDP ratio rose steadily in most EU countries up to the late 1990s, largely reflecting a sustained expansion … of public sector commitments to welfare provision. Since the late 1990s, many EU countries have cut tax rates. However …, the tax burden in the EU area remains much higher than in most other economies. The tax mix is also different, with high …

concentrated and the tax and transfer system has little redistributive impact. The tax-to-GDP ratio remains low. Consumption taxes …, which tend to be regressive, account for the bulk. The progressivity of income taxes had been undermined by generous tax … reliefs, which benefit the well-off most and increase tax avoidance opportunities. The tax system should be reformed to …

-effectiveness of many public spending programmes, while leaving some room to cut the high tax-to-GDP ratio. This paper identifies the …

-- a serious issue since few public goods are purely local by nature. On the revenue side, few tax bases can be exploited …

The tax-to-GDP ratio rose steadily in most EU countries up to the late 1990s, largely reflecting a sustained expansion … of public sector commitments to welfare provision. Since the late 1990s, many EU countries have cut tax rates. However …, the tax burden in the EU area remains much higher than in most other economies. The tax mix is also different, with high …