17 Country Poll on Taxes, Spending and Priorities

Results show that people in North America, Latin America and Europe tend to be less satisfied with the level of taxation in their respective countries.

16 March 2000

But Only 43% Say Reduce Services to Cut Taxes 74% Say Healthcare Top Spending Priority

London, U.K. -- The Angus Reid World Poll conducted in 17 countries during February of 2000 examined international attitudes and priorities concerning taxes and government spending.

The results show that people in North America, Latin America and Europe tend to be less satisfied with the level of taxation in their respective countries compared to many of their counterparts in Asia and Australia/New Zealand. As well, a majority of World Poll respondents in every country surveyed would prefer that any tax cut be directed to poorer people to reduce poverty rather than being directed to better-off people to improve incentives.

Offered a broad overall choice, a plurality of World Poll respondents said they would prefer their respective national governments to spend less on public services and thus reduce their tax burden, although maintaining current levels of government spending was a popular policy option as well. Only in a few countries did a large number of people express a preference for increased spending on public services if it means paying more taxes - the U.K. stands out as the only one of the 17 countries where a majority opted for this.

In every country included in our latest World Poll, a clear majority of respondents would like their government to spend more money on health. Increased spending on education and on benefits for poor people garnered majority support in most countries as well. People were less enthusiastic about their government spending more money on public infrastructure such as roads and bridges. Finally, a significant proportion of people in many countries would prefer that their government spend less money on defense and on arts and culture - although views on these items vary markedly from country to country.

These results emerged from an international public opinion survey conducted by the Angus Reid Group. This poll involved interviews among a total of 9,075 adults in 17 countries: Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Thailand, the United Kingdom and the United States. Data collection was carried out in February of 2000.

The target sample size was 500 for each country with the exception of a 1,000 sample size in the United States. In 14 of the 17 countries, the survey sample provided national representation; in the other three countries - Brazil, Mexico and Thailand - the survey sample is urban-only. In-person, door-to-door interviewing was used in these urban-only countries and in Malaysia. Telephone interviewing was used in all other countries. The complete data set was weighted so that the overall survey results reflect the proportional populations of the countries/urban areas in the sample.

International Views On Current Taxation Levels

Overall, seven in ten (72%) World Poll respondents said that taxes are too high in their country, while one-quarter (24%) described the taxation levels as "about right". Only 2 percent said that taxes are too low in their own country. In 13 of the 17 countries surveyed, a full majority of people feel that the level of taxation in their own country is too high. (Table 1)
Dissatisfaction with current taxation levels was uniformly high throughout the four North America and Latin American countries polled: nine in ten (92%) urban Brazilians, eight in ten Canadians (85%) and urban Mexicans (82%) and seven in ten (70%) Americans expressed the view that their own country's taxation levels are too high.
In all six European countries surveyed, a majority of respondents think that taxes are too high, ranging from 89 percent in France and 79 percent in Germany, down to 56 percent in the Netherlands and 51 percent in the U.K.
The poll results show people in Asia are more satisfied with the level of taxation in their own country. Only in Japan (78%) and urban Thailand (57%) did a majority of World Poll respondents say that taxes are too high. Seven in ten (69%) Hong Kong residents and half of Singaporeans (52%) and Malaysians (46%) indicated that taxes are "about right" in their own country.
Six in ten (60%) Australians said that their taxes are too high, while people in New Zealand were evenly divided on this issue: 49 percent feel taxes are too high while 46 percent said that taxes are "about right".

International Tax Cut Priorities: For Rich or For Poor?

Overall, nearly three-quarters (73%) of World Poll respondents think that any tax cut in their own country should be directed to poorer people to reduce poverty rather than being directed to better-off people to improve incentives. Just one in five (20%) felt that any reduction in taxes should be directed at better-off people instead of poorer people. In fact, in every country included in the latest World Poll, a full majority of people would direct tax cuts to poorer people rather than better-off people. (Table 2)