New OECD report on Social spending by governments

Thought this new OECD report might be of interest. It reveals that public social spending in OECD countries was around 20% of GDP on average in 2019. At just over 30% of GDP, public spending on areas such as pensions, healthcare and unemployment benefits is highest in France, while Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Italy, Norway and Sweden also devote more than a quarter of their GDP to public social support. In contrast, public social spending in countries such as Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ireland, Korea, Mexico and Turkey accounts for less than 15% of GDP. After accounting for private social expenditure and the impact of the tax system, the United States is the second highest spender, at just below 30% of GDP.

Do note that the COVID-19 pandemic is expected to lead to a marked increase in social spending in the coming years but the data will not be available until the next update of the OECD Social Expenditure Database, scheduled for 2022.