L'Etat, c'est la grande fiction à travers laquelle tout le monde s'efforce de vivre aux dépens de tout le monde. Frédéric Bastiat

vendredi 6 janvier 2006

INDEX OF ECONOMIC FREEDOM

Le nouveau "Index of Economic Freedom 2006" est sorti.

La Belgique se classe à une maigre 22ème place:

Belgium has one of the world's highest total tax burdens. Government spending amounted to 49.4 percent of GDP in 2004, and the social transfer system remains one of the world's most extensive and expensive; on average, one working-age adult supports slightly more than one benefit recipient. Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt has concentrated on targeted cuts in income tax and social security contributions to achieve his goal of increased job creation, and the program has met with relative success in Western European terms. GDP increased by 2.7 percent in 2004, with unemployment at 7.8 percent. Another principal fiscal policy objective is budgetary consolidation. Public debt remains staggeringly high (95.9 percent of GDP in 2004) despite years of steady decline. Labor laws remain highly complex, particularly in terms of employment, health, and safety regulations, and lawmakers frequently add to the already onerous European Union labor regulations. Belgium is still run on a largely corporatist basis, with the business federation and unions negotiating a national collective bargaining agreement every other year.