Social protection and revenue collection are often regarded as potential drivers of social cohesion. The article joins this debate, providing three main contributions. First, we carefully discuss the concept of social cohesion and endorse one specific definition. Second, we propose using the...

For many years Greece has not made a systematic effort to redesign the whole tax system. Changes to taxation have been made in a piecemeal fashion, and many of them have led to a complex and non-transparent system, characterised by narrow bases and fairly high rates. There has also been a...

The Portuguese tax system has developed positively in the past decade. Following the 1989 tax reform, tax bases have been broadened and statutory tax rates lowered. The overall tax burden is not high by international comparison and the tax mix relies on the more neutral consumption taxes....

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...

The tax burden in Korea is among the lowest in the OECD area, mainly reflecting that the social safety net is at an early stage of development. The low tax burden implies limited tax induced economic distortions but as expenditure pressures will mount in the future, neutrality and efficiency of...

Belgium has a heavy tax burden which has mainly fallen on labour as international tax competition has limited the scope to which this burden could be imposed on capital. This has raised concerns about possible adverse labour market impacts from such high tax rates. In view of these concerns, the...

This paper analyses the possibilities for reforming the Icelandic tax system. It puts the current tax structure in its historic context, showing that there has been a steady movement towards simplification. The personal income tax has a lower than average number of bands and, taxes capital...

New Zealand’s tax system is one of the most neutral and efficient in the OECD. Bases are generally broad and rates are moderate. The full imputation system for dividend payments works to reduce tax distortions for corporate financing decisions, while efficiency in corporate investment...