The yellow vestene in Paris is a warning, also to Norwegian politicians

The last 20 years have the very richest in the united STATES secured an even greater share of the economic pie. The percentage with the highest incomes has been transferred 10 to 15 per cent of the country's finalized earnings. The wide layers of the people have struggled with reallønnsnedgang and loss of jobs.

Eigil Knutsen. Show more

In Europe the development in the same direction, but at a pace that is about five times slower. Also in our part of the world, the rich richer, but the united STATES stands out with an increase in the economic differences that the world has not seen in over a hundred years.

the Last time we saw similar differences were in the period from the end of the 1800s and up to the outbreak of the first world war in 1914. The extreme differences were greatly reduced by the economic shock from the two world wars and the great depression began with the stock market crash on Wall Street in 1929.

the Second world war left behind a Europe in ruins. Decades after the war has been characterized by economic progress, and with a relatively stable lønnsulikhet in our continent. Inequalities are growing, but much slower than in the united STATES.

Knaller to the "forskjells-Erna"

IN the united STATES is now the wage as large as they were before the first world war. It does not mean that the economic elite are the same now. A hundred years ago lived the richest americans of their capital income (returns on property, businesses, and capital). These kapitalinntektene is today replaced by sky-high executive compensation.

the Development in the Uk going in the same direction. Those with the highest income earn ever more, and increasing its share of the country's totalinntekt. At the opposite end are stagnating reallønnen to those with low income. The French economist Thomas Piketty argues that the development in the united STATES and the united Kingdom will reach the rest of Europe, unless we take active political measures to reduce the economic differences.

The us and uk economies are not fundamentally different from the rest of Europe. Developments in technology and productivity are certainly comparable in the period after the second world war. Why increase when the economic differences faster in the united STATES and the united Kingdom than in the rest of Europe?

the Reactions suggest that the king's warning comes in the seineste team Leader

On the 1970s, spread it a feeling in the united STATES and the united Kingdom that they lagged behind economically compared to other western countries. This was one of the reasons for the conservative revolutions that resulted in president Reagan and prime minister Thatcher. Up to then, both countries had a high income tax on the largest incomes.

Reagan and Thatcher lowered taxes, which in itself created more inequality. In addition, it gave corporate managers greater incentives to fight to increase his own salary. Especially in the U.S., this group is also great political influence in that they finance the politicians and think tanks that promotes policies that increase the differences. Such breeds inequality even more inequality.

How do we stand in the Uk? Some think that Norway is a kind of likhetsideal where everyone gets their fair share of the value. We see behind the façade, however, we quickly out that the differences also here increases in a dangerously pace, and have done it for the last 20 years. The economic differences in Norway is still small. According to a survey from the OECD, Norway is among the countries with the lowest lønnsulikhet of 25 comparable countries. It's rise in the inequality, which is ominous.

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In an OECD survey, it was Germany and Norway had the highest growth in the wage in the period from 2000 to 2015. The gap between the ten percent who earn the least and those who earn most are now on 65.600 million per month. The percentage of the population with the highest salary has increased its share of total revenue from 3.1 to 3.7 per cent since 2002. This corresponds to an increase of 20 per cent.

such A development can obviously do not continue. In Norway is the trust amongst us, one of our foremost competitive advantage. Competent and motivated employees likewise. Several researchers and authors, including Richard Wilkinson in his book, Ulikhetens price (2009), have documented that the major economic differences take down on confidence, productivity, and thus value creation in a society.

A of course answer the increasing differences is to make the tax system more progressive, meaning that those with high incomes and fortunes will take a greater share of the tax burden. In the united STATES and the united Kingdom have a lack of progressivitet in the tax system meant that inequalities have grown sharply. Other countries in Europe (including in the Nordic countries) have had relatively progressive tax systems that have made sure to avoid the huge inequalities from the period before the first world war.

Tax system in Norway is still progressive, but it is going in the wrong direction. Those with over 100 million fortune has received more than nok 500,000 in a lower tax since the right wing took over the parliament palace in 2013. Increased taxes in the form of tolls, barnehagepris and consumer tax are hardly noticed by the richest, and constitute a much bigger burden for the low income. Lower capital tax and the increased taxes makes the tax system less progressive.

Therefore we insist on the left that the richest need to pay more income tax and net wealth tax. With Ap's proposal to the government budget would to all with income under 750.000 money paid less income tax. Those with higher incomes would have paid more and thus acquired a part of the tax burden from those with lower wages. It would have given a more fair distribution.

Powerful political grip within workplace, education, and taxes need to stop the strong growth in inequality in Norway. In France, there are now large protests against president Macron, which increases taxes for ordinary people and provides large tax cuts to the very richest. The yellow vestene in Paris’ streets should serve as a warning to all politicians who did not take the increasing economic differences seriously.