We analyse Ricardo’s plan for paying off the national debt by a tax on property. The main thesis is that the capital levy, although apparently conceived as equally shared among all the components of the owning class, would imply substantial redistribution of wealth. The argument is developed by discussing the quantitative estimates provided by Ricardo about the amount of capital to be subjected to taxation. By establishing a connection between these estimates and the main statistical figures that were at the centre of the economic debate at the end of the Napoleonic Wars, it is shown in what manner the burden of this extraordinary measure would be divided between capitalists and landlords.
The Redistributive Consequences of Paying Off the National Debt: Ricardo and his Plan / Barba, Aldo. - (2019). (Intervento presentato al convegno International Workshop on Classical Monetary Theory tenutosi a Rikkyo University Tokyo nel March 2019).
The Redistributive Consequences of Paying Off the National Debt: Ricardo and his Plan
Aldo Barba
2019
Abstract
We analyse Ricardo’s plan for paying off the national debt by a tax on property. The main thesis is that the capital levy, although apparently conceived as equally shared among all the components of the owning class, would imply substantial redistribution of wealth. The argument is developed by discussing the quantitative estimates provided by Ricardo about the amount of capital to be subjected to taxation. By establishing a connection between these estimates and the main statistical figures that were at the centre of the economic debate at the end of the Napoleonic Wars, it is shown in what manner the burden of this extraordinary measure would be divided between capitalists and landlords.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
