Scandinavia’s high tax model thrives on shared narratives, experience, and priorities. Equality, trust, and a demand for good quality public services both create and reflect a cohesive and content society, writes Sandy Goldbeck-Wood The Scandinavian social democracies are widely admired for their world class public services, which are supported by high levels of taxation, productivity, and education, and equality of income and opportunity. In 2021, for example, Norway had a tax-to-GDP (gross domestic product) ratio of 42.2% compared with 33.5% in the UK and 24.5% in the US.12 Conversely, income inequality is notably low in Norway, which has a Gini coefficient—a measure of income distribution within a population—of just 22.7 compared with 32.6 in the UK and 39.8 in the US, where inequality approaches that in many Latin American and African countries.3 But is this egalitarianism translatable to other settings? Can other nations longing for better public services learn from this? In the Scandinavian virtuous cycle of welfare, equality, happiness, and trusted governments and institutions, it is hard to distinguish cause from effect. The fact that Scandinavians expect, and get, high quality public services “free” or with small co-payments, and baulk at paying privately for health and education, is both cause and effect of social democracy. Any lessons are likely to be complex and cultural, and perhaps contestable. The most striking aspect of Scandinavian taxation is not its top rate, which for example in Norway at 38% is not exceptionally high, but the number of people who pay this rate. The income level at which people start paying the higher rate in Norway is just 1.5 times the national average income, compared with 8.5 times in …

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共同渡过难关：斯堪的纳维亚支持高税收背后的故事


斯堪的纳维亚的高税收模式在共同的叙述、经验和优先事项上蓬勃发展。平等、信任和对优质公共服务的需求都创造并反映了一个有凝聚力和满足感的社会，桑迪·戈德贝克-伍德写道。斯堪的纳维亚社会民主国家因其世界一流的公共服务而广受钦佩，这些服务得到了高水平的税收、生产力和教育以及收入和机会平等的支持。例如，2021 年，挪威的税收与 GDP（国内生产总值）之比为 42.2%，而英国为 33.5%，美国为 24.5%12。相反，挪威的收入不平等程度明显较低，挪威的基尼系数（衡量人口内部收入分配的指标）仅为 22.7，而英国为 32.6，美国为 39.8。 许多拉丁美洲和非洲国家的不平等程度接近3。但是，这种平等主义可以转化为其他情况吗？其他渴望更好的公共服务的国家能否从中学习？在福利、平等、幸福以及值得信赖的政府和机构的斯堪的纳维亚良性循环中，很难区分因果关系。斯堪的纳维亚人期望并获得“免费”或小额共付额的高质量公共服务，并且不愿私下支付健康和教育费用，这一事实既是社会民主主义的原因也是结果。任何课程都可能是复杂的和文化性的，也许是有争议的。斯堪的纳维亚税收最引人注目的方面不是它的最高税率，例如在挪威，38% 并不是特别高，而是支付这个税率的人数。在挪威，人们开始支付较高税率的收入水平仅为全国平均收入的 1.5 倍，而挪威的 8.5 倍......