Orbán’s Oligarchs on Edge as Hungary Poised to Launch Wealth Tax

THE GUARDIAN: New PM Péter Magyar calls policy a sign of ‘social justice’ after years of political loyalty being rewarded with economic opportunity

This screenshot comes from this article. | Péter Magyar and his party, Tisza, have their sights firmly set on Viktor Orbán’s oligarchs. Photograph: Olivier Matthys/EPA
In a dimly lit television studio, one of Hungary’s richest men is on the verge of tears. It is early May, weeks after the general election that ended Viktor Orbán’s 16-year grip on power, and the advertising mogul Balásy Gyula has an announcement to make.

Gyula tells the interviewer that he has just surrendered his businesses to the state, along with a chunk of his private savings. He has even brought along a notarised deed – a legal document setting out the change of ownership.

“In the current situation, I don’t think that our group of companies has a future,” he says.

Gyula was among the most prominent beneficiaries of the Orbán era. His companies operated a network of poster sites known as the blue billboards, on which a succession of figures from the financier George Soros to the European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, were designated as public enemies, in propaganda campaigns paid for by the state.

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The wealth tax debate is a global one, with the government in Brazil and trade unions in California pushing for legislation. In the UK the Green party and many Labour MPs back the idea. In France the socialist president François Mitterrand introduced the Impôt sur les Grandes Fortunes in 1982, only for it to be repealed under Emmanuel Macron. Last year the French parliament came very close to reinstating the levy, and it is likely to be a big talking point in next year’s presidential election. For now, however, Hungary looks set to move first. » | Juliette Garside | Tuesday, June 2, 2026

”We Need a Wealth Tax on Billionaires.” Here's Why | Aaron Bastani Meets Gabriel Zucman

May 24, 2026 | Introducing a wealth tax on the very richest people in our society has never been more popular amongst the electorate, with recent polls showing 90% approval. This figure is basically unheard of when polling people on any form of policy proposal.

This week's guest, Gabriel Zucman, is a French economist who is a key inspiration for the UK's leading wealth tax advocate and friend of the show, Gary Stevenson.

Bernie Sanders Unleashes Fury on Musk & Billionaire Class, Demands Wealth Tax Now

Feb 21, 2026 | Sen. Bernie Sanders warned that despite huge gains in productivity and technology, American workers are earning less than they did more than 50 years ago after inflation, while the richest Americans prosper. He argued that this crisis is driven by a “massive concentration of ownership,” noting that just four Wall Street giants, BlackRock, Vanguard, Fidelity, and State Street, are now major shareholders in about 95% of U.S. corporations.

Bernie Sanders is the man who should be president. Now this man really would make America great again! If only the American voter could be more clear-eyed! Were Bernie Sanders made president, we’d see a nation emerge which is far more at ease with itself, and it would be, of course, eminently fairer. An America governed by Bernie Sanders wouldn’t put a stop to the accumulation of wealth—nobody should want to do that—but an America governed by Bernie Sanders would endeavour to give every American a chance to succeed in life. Let us pray that Americans will one day see the light! — © Mark Alexander

Ex-First Minister Drakeford Calls for Wealth Tax

BBC: The chancellor "absolutely" needs to look at introducing a wealth tax to deal with a growing gap between the rich and the poor, according a former Welsh first minister.

Mark Drakeford said the "root of inequality is the way that wealth is distributed across the population".

He also told Walescast it was a "moral imperative" for Labour governments to scrap the two-child benefit cap as a way of reducing child poverty. » | James Williams, Presenter Walescast | Wednesday, July 9, 2025

Millionaires Call On Governments Worldwide to ‘Tax Us Now’

THE GUARDIAN: Group of 102 wealthy people say tax would help tackle gulf between rich and poor

Gemma McGough, a British entrepreneur and founding member of Patriotic Millionaires UK.Photograph: PA
More than 100 members of the global super-rich called on Wednesday for governments around the world to “tax us now” to help pay for the pandemic response and tackle the gulf between rich and poor.

The group of 102 millionaires and billionaires, including Disney heiress Abigail Disney, said the current tax system is rigged in their favour and needs to be rewritten to make taxation fairer for hard-working people and restore trust in politics.

“As millionaires, we know that the current tax system is not fair,” they said in an open letter published on Wednesday. “Most of us can say that, while the world has gone through an immense amount of suffering in the last two years, we have actually seen our wealth rise during the pandemic – yet few if any of us can honestly say that we pay our fair share in taxes.”

The super-rich signatories, who brand themselves as “patriotic millionaires”, called for the introduction of “permanent wealth taxes on the richest to help reduce extreme inequality and raise revenue for sustained, long-term increases in public services like healthcare”. » | Rupert Neate Wealth correspondent | Wednesday, January 19, 2022