Wagner's Law and Peacock and Wiseman's Displacement Effect in European Union Countries: A Panel Data Study

Wagner's Law is the first model of public expenditure in the history of public finance. It suggests that during the process of economic development the share of public spending in national income tends to expand (Wagner, 1883). Nevertheless, Peacock and Scott in 2000 wrote a paper entitled “Th...

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Main Authors: Cosimo Magazzino, Lorenzo Giolli, Marco Mele
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: EconJournals 2015-07-01
Series:International Journal of Economics and Financial Issues
Online Access:https://econjournals.com/index.php/ijefi/article/view/1317
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author Cosimo Magazzino
Lorenzo Giolli
Marco Mele
author_facet Cosimo Magazzino
Lorenzo Giolli
Marco Mele
author_sort Cosimo Magazzino
collection DOAJ
description Wagner's Law is the first model of public expenditure in the history of public finance. It suggests that during the process of economic development the share of public spending in national income tends to expand (Wagner, 1883). Nevertheless, Peacock and Scott in 2000 wrote a paper entitled “The curious attraction of Wagner's law”, explaining the reasons for why this (apparently) outworn theory is still studied by modern economists. On the other hand, Keynes (1936) considered public spending as an exogenous factor to be used as a policy instrument to influence growth. Moreover, Peacock and Wiseman (1961) presented the displacement effect, according to which during times of war tax rates are increased to generate more revenues, sustaining the increase in defense spending. While Peacock and Wiseman (1979) surveys the literature on public expenditure growth. This paper aims to analyze the relationship between public expenditure and aggregate income in EU countries, for the period 1980-2013, using panel data methodologies. After a brief introduction, a survey of the economic literature on this issue is discussed. Then, panel data tests on stationarity, cross-dependence, cointegration, and causality are shown. Finally, some notes on policy implications conclude the paper. Keywords: Wagner's Law; public expenditure; GDP; EMU; panel data JEL Classifications: C23; E60; H50; H60
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spelling doaj.art-71d8989ad5ed46cdace5b56158155d9e2023-02-15T16:17:34ZengEconJournalsInternational Journal of Economics and Financial Issues2146-41382015-07-0153Wagner's Law and Peacock and Wiseman's Displacement Effect in European Union Countries: A Panel Data StudyCosimo Magazzino0Lorenzo GiolliMarco MeleRoma Tre University Wagner's Law is the first model of public expenditure in the history of public finance. It suggests that during the process of economic development the share of public spending in national income tends to expand (Wagner, 1883). Nevertheless, Peacock and Scott in 2000 wrote a paper entitled “The curious attraction of Wagner's law”, explaining the reasons for why this (apparently) outworn theory is still studied by modern economists. On the other hand, Keynes (1936) considered public spending as an exogenous factor to be used as a policy instrument to influence growth. Moreover, Peacock and Wiseman (1961) presented the displacement effect, according to which during times of war tax rates are increased to generate more revenues, sustaining the increase in defense spending. While Peacock and Wiseman (1979) surveys the literature on public expenditure growth. This paper aims to analyze the relationship between public expenditure and aggregate income in EU countries, for the period 1980-2013, using panel data methodologies. After a brief introduction, a survey of the economic literature on this issue is discussed. Then, panel data tests on stationarity, cross-dependence, cointegration, and causality are shown. Finally, some notes on policy implications conclude the paper. Keywords: Wagner's Law; public expenditure; GDP; EMU; panel data JEL Classifications: C23; E60; H50; H60 https://econjournals.com/index.php/ijefi/article/view/1317
spellingShingle Cosimo Magazzino
Lorenzo Giolli
Marco Mele
Wagner's Law and Peacock and Wiseman's Displacement Effect in European Union Countries: A Panel Data Study
International Journal of Economics and Financial Issues
title Wagner's Law and Peacock and Wiseman's Displacement Effect in European Union Countries: A Panel Data Study
title_full Wagner's Law and Peacock and Wiseman's Displacement Effect in European Union Countries: A Panel Data Study
title_fullStr Wagner's Law and Peacock and Wiseman's Displacement Effect in European Union Countries: A Panel Data Study
title_full_unstemmed Wagner's Law and Peacock and Wiseman's Displacement Effect in European Union Countries: A Panel Data Study
title_short Wagner's Law and Peacock and Wiseman's Displacement Effect in European Union Countries: A Panel Data Study
title_sort wagner s law and peacock and wiseman s displacement effect in european union countries a panel data study
url https://econjournals.com/index.php/ijefi/article/view/1317
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