Across the continent, but especially in southern Europe, taxes and strict labor-market regulations keep unemployment high, at 11% of the labor force, and dissuade Europeans from investing in their education. The natural consequences are too little employment, too little investment in sophisticated education, too little innovation, and minimal increases in productivity.
为了支撑这笔费用，就必须增加政府收入。同时，因为难以有效计算资本所得税，欧洲转而对劳动征收极高税率。整个欧洲大陆，尤其南欧，税收和严苛的劳动力市场使得失业率居高不下，占劳动力总量的11%，也因此阻碍了欧洲人对教育的投资。自然后果是就业过低，高等教育投资过低，创新过少，伴随着生产力的极低增长。