WORLD'S 26 RICHEST PEOPLE HAVE AS MUCH WEALTH AS THE POOREST 50 PERCENT OF HUMANITY, REPORT SAYS
NEWSWEEK BY JASON LEMON ON 1/21/19 AT 1:10 PM
Oxfam International, a confederation of charities based in the United Kingdom that works to alleviate poverty, released its annual inequality report, calling for governments to increase taxes on the wealthy to address the growing problem. Since the financial crisis in 2008, the world’s wealthiest have increased their fortunes by billions of dollars, while the bottom 50 percent of the global population—about 3.8 billion people—have seen an overall decrease of more than 10 percent.
“People across the globe are angry and frustrated," Winnie Byanyima, Oxfam's executive director, warned in a statement, according to Al Jazeera. "Governments must now deliver real change by ensuring corporations and wealthy individuals pay their fair share of tax,” she said, pointing out that even a minimal increase would raise substantial funds that could be used to cover education and health care costs.
In some Western nations, such as Brazil and the United Kingdom, the wealthiest 10 percent actually pay a lower portion of their income in taxes than the poorest 10 percent, according to the report. “Getting the richest 1 percent to pay just 0.5 percent extra tax on their wealth could raise more money than it would cost to educate all of the 262 million children out of school and provide healthcare that would save the lives of 3.3 million people,” the document explained. It is also estimated that the world’s super wealthy have hidden approximately $7.6 trillion from tax authorities, which would deprive developing nations of about $170 billion annually.
