We treat fiscal equalization between two states as an insurance device against regional tax revenue variations. This insurance comes at the price of a moral hazard: regional governments will spend too little effort fostering and exploiting their local tax base. We show that total fiscal...

The recently established European Globalization Fund (EGF) is an attempt to better share the benefits of globalisation at the EU-level, targeting workers who loose their job due to trade-induced mass lay-offs. We find that the typical income shock for trade displaced workers is a serious one....

This Blueprint examines why and how EuropeÂ?s migration challenge should be urgently addressed. Jakob von Weizsäcker identifies three priority areas for EU policy action and concrete policy suggestions which could fit with the immigration agenda of the French presidency.

A key figure suited to measuring intergenerational imbalances in unfunded public pension schemes is given by the 'implicit tax rate' imposed on each generation's lifetime income. The implicit tax arises from the fact that, quite generally, pension benefits fall short of actuarial returns to...

The European Union (EU) provides grants to disadvantaged regions of member states to allow them to catch up with the EU average. Under the Objective 1 scheme, NUTS2 regions with a GDP per capita level below 75% of the EU average qualify for structural funds transfers from the central EU budget....

This paper discusses the welfare implications of a pay-as-you-go pension reform by introducing a child benefit in an endogenous fertility setting. In the model of a small open economy, higher fertility is associated with a reduction of lifetime labour supply. The optimum share of...