Bill Gates at the World Economic Forum in Davos.
Fabrice Coffrini/Getty Images
Bill Gates calls for a tax to be imposed on the rich.
At the World Economic Forum, he said that “those who have the most” should be more generous.
More than 250 wealthy individuals signed an open letter calling on world leaders to tax the rich more heavily.
This is a machine translation of an article from our US colleagues at Business Insider. It was automatically translated and checked by an editor.
Bill Gates wants the super-rich to pay more taxes — and now a growing chorus of billionaires agree.
In its annual “Ask me anything” Forum on Reddit last year, the Microsoft co-founder said he was “surprised” that taxes on the rich had not been increased more.
At the World Economic Forum in Davos this week, Gates reiterated his call for taxing the rich. He said that richest nations should have more money to developing countries donateto eliminate inequality.
“Those who have the most money – be they countries, companies or individuals – should be pushed to be more generous,” he said.
The surprising thing is that many rich people agree with Gates
Apparently others see it that way too, because more than 250 very wealthy people have one open letterwhich calls on leaders to impose a wealth tax.
“Our request is simple: We ask you to tax us, the very wealthiest in society,” the letter said. The letter also said that taxing the super-rich would not “deprive” their children or “fundamentally alter” their standard of living.
The signatories of the open letter include: Abigail Disneywhose grandfather Roy O. Disney co-founded the Walt Disney Company. The signatories also include “Succession” actor Brian Cox and Valerie Rockefeller from the Rockefeller family.
“If the elected representatives of the world’s leading economies do not take action to address the dramatic increase in economic inequality, the consequences for society will continue to be catastrophic,” the letter said.
Along with the letter, a report was published as part of the Proud To Pay More campaign, launched by Patriotic Millionaires, Patriotic Millionaires UK, TaxMeNow, Millionaires For Humanity and the charity Oxfam.
The report includes a note from Abigail Disney in which she writes that it was “wrong” alone with her family’s private Boeing 737 while traveling from California to New York fly.
The Disney heiress said: “I have since stopped flying privately and have changed my habits to protect the environment.”
She also accused the richest 1% of contributing to climate change with their “private jets, superyachts, gas-guzzling hot rods, helicopters and (for a lucky few) private space rockets.”
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