François Hollande, the front-runner for the French presidency, has announced plans to squeeze the country’s top earners with a 75 per cent tax on income above €1 million ($1.35 million).

The Socialist presidential candidate said on French television that it is patriotic to pay more in tax to help France in getting its house back in order.

When President Nicolas Sarkozy came to power in 2007, he introduced a “tax ceiling” at 50 per cent. Sarkozy’s reputation, however, has suffered from the eurozone crisis and he is well behind Hollande in most opinion polls. Hollande has previously called for more regulation in the world of finance, but at the same time sought to reassure the financial district in London by saying that his proposals are similar to those of Sarkozy on the centre-right.

The first round of the French presidential election will be held on 22 April.

The proposed tax rate would be much higher than other top rates in Europe. Sweden has currently the world’s highest top rate of income tax at 57 per cent, which kicks in already at SEK580,000 ($88,000).Top-earners in the UK are taxed at 50 per cent on income above £150,000 ($240,000).

Tax rates have also been a central topic in the ongoing Republican presidential candidates election campaign in the US, where top earners are currently paying federal income tax of 35 per cent and an additional state rate somewhere between nought and 10 per cent. All Republican candidates are proposing lower tax rates, but some doubt their credibility because of the country’s weak fiscal position.