In a referendum held on Sunday (30/11), the vast majority of voters in Switzerland rejected the proposal to impose a 50% tax on the so-called “ultra-rich”.
This initiative, led by the left wing of the Swiss Socialist Party, was rejected by 78.2% of voters. The new tax will be applied to all inheritances and donations worth more than 50 million Swiss francs (about 330 million Brazilian reals).
According to the proposal’s supporters, the goal of taxing the wealthy would be to raise more resources for social issues, such as fighting climate change.
The Swiss parliament, closely divided between conservatives, socialists, liberals and Christian Democrats, recommended voting against the project. The coalition government followed the same line, fearing that final approval of the new tax would generate a “flight” movement from the country’s great wealth.
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Another concern of the government was that imposing taxes on the wealthy would scare off other millionaires and billionaires who were thinking of settling in the country. For decades, Switzerland has been the preferred destination for businessmen from other countries to settle there.
Preliminary estimates indicate that the new tax will affect about 2,500 taxpayers in Switzerland.
In Brazil, Lula advocates taxing the wealthy
In early November, during a speech at a climate summit in Belém, President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva defended taxing the wealthy and corporations, and said richer countries should fund nature conservation measures. Brazil has made efforts to make wealthier countries pay for most measures to mitigate climate change.
“Without including private capital, the calculation would not be complete,” Lula said. “Most of the world’s wealth generated in the past four decades has been captured by individuals or companies, while national budgets have shrunk. A person in the richest 1% produces more carbon than the poorest 50% of the world’s population during the entire year.”
The Brazilian president continued: “It is legitimate to demand more contributions from these people. Minimum taxes on multinational corporations and taxing the wealth of the rich could generate valuable resources for climate action.”
On several other occasions since taking office for his third term in the Palacio do Planalto, Lula has advocated for a 2% “global tax” on the assets of the ultra-rich. According to the Brazilian government, the amount will be allocated to feed 673 million people currently suffering from hunger in the world.