An extensive overview of the Thessaloniki International Fair package was provided by Ministry of Finance spokesperson Omiros Tsapalos on Wednesday morning (20/8) on SKAI television. The package will include tax cuts for the middle class and housing measures, with the economic reforms to be announced by the Prime Minister totaling 1.5 billion euros.
Specifically, he emphasized: “Moving forward, budget execution is progressing satisfactorily. The fight against tax evasion is going well, because from there we expect funds to provide permanent tax reduction measures at the Thessaloniki Fair, and the primary surplus is also performing well.”
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Tsapalos on Thessaloniki Fair: package will include tax cuts and housing measures
Regarding the outline of what the Prime Minister will announce, Mr. Tsapalos described the philosophy of the reforms, with emphasis placed on the middle class. “This is that social/economic category, households declaring between 20,000 and 50,000 euros, who bore the largest burden both of the bailout programs and of the Greek economy’s recovery. The time has come for these people to be rewarded in a permanent and fair way.”
“There is no logic of subsidy support; it doesn’t belong to this government. It was applied to some degree during the Covid period, as in all of Europe, precisely to provide emergency support to specific social groups and the entire Greek population. But this is not the rule. The rule is to find fiscally sound ways, without endangering the country’s fiscal trajectory, for permanent tax reductions and income enhancement.”
“Indexation is fiscally dangerous”
Asked about indexation of the tax scale, he stressed: “Indexation is a policy that if implemented would lead to serious fiscal risk. The burden on the budget would be disproportionately large compared to what the budget can support. On the other hand, in the Prime Minister’s announcements there will be things that citizens will really see in their pockets as significant support.”
“Dozens of ideas have been put on the table,” he continued. “Some of them have priority regarding their examination. One I can tell you is changes to direct taxation scales and not to VAT. Why direct taxation scales? Because if changes are announced, automatically wage earners and pensioners can see an increase in their income from the next month, because tax withholding will be reduced.”
“I think citizens prefer this to seeing a VAT reduction, which might not reach the final consumer and could be pocketed by intermediaries, middlemen, etc.”
