Millionaires at Davos: "Tax us now"

Deepest pockets are weighing heavy - 13th June 2022

A handful of wealthy attendees gathered at the World Economic Forum (WEF) are calling on global leaders to tackle the cost of living crisis by pushing up taxes for the super-rich. Political and business leaders returned to Davos, Switzerland, to resume in-person meetings of the WEF, which had been paused since the onset of the pandemic.

Among these delegates is UK millionaire Mr White, who represents a group called Patriotic Millionaires. Having made his money as a business consultant, he explained that his decision to join left-wing and anti-poverty campaigners calling for change at the annual meeting was down to the failure of the current economic system. The group took to the streets alongside left-wing activists to call for fairer tax systems worldwide.

White believes that the WEF's approach should shift. "While the rest of the world is collapsing under the weight of an economic crisis, billionaires and world leaders meet in this private compound to discuss turning points in history," he said. "It's outrageous that our political leaders listen to those who have the most, know the least about the economic impact of this crisis, and many of whom pay infamously little in taxes. The only credible outcome from this conference is to tax the richest and tax us now."

The past decade has seen a growing number of millionaires and billionaires in the US and Europe speaking out. They're calling for governments to impose higher taxes, including wealth levies on the richest. While only a small number of millionaires were in Davos to attend the protest, the campaigners have sent an open letter to all Davos delegates, signed by millionaire supporters in numerous countries.

Global aid charity Oxfam, which issues a report on inequality during the Davos forum each year, claims that the last two years have witnessed a serious increase in concentrations of wealth. It observes that a new billionaire had been created every 30 hours, yet at the other end of the income spectrum, the charity expects around a million people to descend into extreme poverty every 33 hours.