NOTHING IN THIS world is certain, mused Benjamin Franklin, except death and taxes. He never had to contend with the European Union's unanimity rule. Eurocrats have long sought to bolster the eu's budget with "own resources"-ie, revenues that accrue to it, rather than cash handed over by member countries on the basis of national income. But almost every attempt to centralise taxation has fallen foul of a national veto. The last big reform to EU revenues was over three decades ago. Some think the club's coming borrowing splurge will revive the debate. On July 21st the eu's 27 national leaders agreed to allow the European Commission to borrow up to €750bn ($880bn) and dish out the proceeds, more than half in the form of grants, to help countries recover from the covid-19 recession. Repayment will start in 2028; new "own resources", the leaders said, should contribute. Once-sceptical members are now keener. "Countries see more concretely that taxes will either have to be collected by the eu or included in national contributions," says Mario Monti, a former Italian prime minister who led an inquiry into own resources in 2017. For fans of "more Europe", common taxes on top of common debt would mark a decisive step towards fiscal union.
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