Abstract

In an era of permanent austerity and financial crisis, the issue of financing the welfare state is topical. Moreover, the future of welfare state funding in countries with ageing populations raises increasing interest in scholarly as well as policy circles. Yet the financing side of welfare benefit provision (i.e. the state’s mandatory charge of taxes and/or social security contributions) has traditionally been given little attention and remains something of a black box of the welfare state. The fact that some of the financing mechanisms have remained ‘hidden’ has added to the confusion about existing policy alternatives.