The next government of the Czech Republic will undoubtedly have to deal with hundreds of billions of crowns in financial imbalances. The majority of political parties declare that if they win the election, they will not raise taxes. Rather, they believe that eliminating the grey economy and counting on economic development are the best ways to face budget deficits.
ČSSD and KSČM would raise taxes on the rich and large corporations. The movement’s formula for greater tax collection, according to Finance Minister Alena Schillerová, is not to raise taxes, but to effectively collect them and tackle tax evasion and fraud. “I will simply demand for a steady and predictable increase in excise taxes imposed on vice, the elimination of tax exemptions, and a change in the taxation of multinational corporations,” Schillerová stated. Meanwhile, in the outgoing House, a proposal to introduce a so-called digital tax was submitted.
Even the Together coalition (ODS, TOP 09, and the People’s Party) has no plans to raise taxes. “On the contrary, we will press for a decrease in VAT from 15% to 10% on the construction or reconstruction of ordinary flats, which will make houses more affordable.” TOP 09 deputy chairman Lukáš Otys pledges, “We will also go after tax evasion.” We will fight internet corporations’ tax avoidance and cut off companies from public funds that are located in tax havens in order to rapidly limit the extent of the underground economy.
Speaking on behalf of his party’s alliance with STAN, Pirates chairman Ivan Bartoš remembered that the coalition had proposed ideas for a debt-free future after consulting with some of the country’s top economists. They demonstrate that it is possible to reduce debt without raising taxes across the board using actual statistics. And that’s what we’re going to do. We believe that eliminating tax exemptions and improving tax collection are both good starting points. There are up to 50 billion dollars every year, “Bartoš said.
Labour Minister Jana Maláčová (ČSSD) is convinced that the public finances cannot be fixed without some tax increases. “ANO and the opposition coalition are lying when they claim that taxes will not be raised in the coming years. The tax cuts for the rich (abolition of the super gross wage) under the acts of Andrej Babiš and Petr Fiala cost something. The ČSSD is and will be here to ensure that normal people do not pay for these pre-election mistakes. “