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Inequality - Public Policy and Political Economy

Objective

Over the past decades, many developed countries have seen considerable increases in income and wealth inequality. Political and economic arguments for and against offsetting this rise in inequality have been put forward. This research program aims at informing this debate by developing new models that capture these trends and by analyzing their optimal policy implications, both theoretically and quantitatively. The goal is to bring together approaches from public economics, labor economics, macroeconomics, and political economy to explore whether rising inequality necessitates institutional responses and, if so, which ones.

This project will shed light on this question from the following three related angles: (1) The changing nature of labor markets and its implications for inequality and tax policy. This part will focus on technological progress (e.g. the replacement of routine tasks) and shifts in the sectoral composition of the economy (e.g. the rise of finance) and what this means for the taxation of labor incomes, profits, and the desirability of basic income policies. (2) The intergenerational dynamics of inequality and the design of tax and public spending policies to promote economic mobility. We will develop a normative framework for optimal policies that balance both equality of opportunity principles and efficient parental sorting based on preference heterogeneity over public spending (e.g. on schools). (3) Wealth inequality and its implications for the political economy of tax policy. This part will incorporate capital taxation into the analysis and explore how it can help promote political stability, both when equilibrium taxes depend on the distribution of wealth in society and, conversely, when political influence correlates with wealth.

This research project aims both to develop new theoretical tools and to implement them empirically, with an emphasis on the implications for the design of real-world tax policies.

Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)

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Keywords

Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)

Programme(s)

Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.

Topic(s)

Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.

Funding Scheme

Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.

ERC-STG - Starting Grant

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Call for proposal

Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.

(opens in new window) ERC-2017-STG

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Host institution

UNIVERSITAT ZURICH
Net EU contribution

Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.

€ 1 008 665,00
Address
RAMISTRASSE 71
8006 Zurich
Switzerland

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Region
Schweiz/Suisse/Svizzera Zürich Zürich
Activity type
Higher or Secondary Education Establishments
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Total cost

The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.

€ 1 008 665,00

Beneficiaries (1)

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