One of the proposed solutions for the Great Financial Crisis is a "Robin Hood tax" on financial transactions. This would raise revenue, while discouraging the financial churn and speculation which has led to so much instability. Now such a tax has gained the approval of the European Commission:
The European Commission has backed plans from 10 countries to launch a financial transactions tax to help raise funds to tackle the debt crisis.
The 10 countries include France, Germany, Italy and Spain.
[...]
The remaining countries that have signed up to the tax are Austria, Belgium, Greece, Portugal, Slovakia and Slovenia.
Britain - slave to the banks - of course stayed out, as did noted tax havens Luxembourg and the Netherlands. But with the core of Europe participating, it will likely spread. And as the Guardian points out, we will effectively have a large controlled experiment in such taxes (though one that the banks can undermine by altering the pattern of their transactions). And hopefully it will provide backing for the calls by the Mana Party for such a tax here.
