Abstract
Autore:
Osculati Franco
Titolo:
"Doveri fiscali, beni e servizi pubblici europei"
As already envisaged in the
1970s (MacDougall Report) monetary policy
alone is not enough to sustain growth in the
entire Eurozone. Contrary to the expectations
of political and economic élites in 1990s,
monetary union did not reduce differences in
Europe. The ecb sets nominal interest rates
while inflation in every single country may be
high or low. There is certainly a need for a
European-level fiscal policy as well as a brake
on tax competition. A budget between 3 – 5
points of gdp is the appropriate instrument.
His financing would be based on a specific
tax transferred from the national level to the
European level. Due to the present fiscal competition
the most proper common tax would
be the corporate tax. On the expenditure side,
investments in infrastructures will be useful
as well as some programs in education. Sharing
a part of tax system, ensuring more education
and limiting disparities in welfare rules
can bring the Eurozone closer to an “optimal
currency area” which would be the most suitable
environment for a monetary union. A
common European budget requires a certain
amount of transfers. However these would
not be transfers from rich countries to less affluent
ones. The costs of services and public
goods enjoyed by Germans and Italians will
be borne by taxpayers no matter if German
or Italian according to normal and desirable
progressiveness criteria. There won’t be any
progress toward European integration without
this fundamental reform.
