Intra- und intergenerative Gerechtigkeit in der Finanzpolitik

A social market economy, together with corrective government activities, allows citizens to achieve the highest possible welfare with limited resources. Income and welfare, however, tend to be very unequally distributed in society. Most theories of justice call for some redistribution for a more equal distribution of welfare. Redistribution diminishes incentives of tax payers and welfare recipients and, thus, reduces aggregate welfare (efficiency). This article discusses how the conflict between efficiency and distributional justice within and between generations can be decided with the help of utilitarian welfare economics.