The head of the CSSD soc. dem. Jan Hamáček proposes to give pensioners next year more than the legal valorisation, which will be 840 crowns, in addition to a one-time 5,000 or more crowns, or after 300 to 400 crowns a month. What do you think?
Growth in pensions is a priority for the YES movement, seniors should get added properly because they deserve it. After the coronavirus crisis, when we helped almost everyone, companies, entrepreneurs, sole traders, it is necessary to help not only pensioners, but also employees. That is why I would like us to agree on the abolition of the super-gross wage.
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Already as Minister of Finance, I pushed 1,200 crowns for pensioners once. We came up with the increase in pensions during my first government at the beginning of 2018, ie even before we formed a coalition with the CSSD. She is now trying to break into it before the regional elections. I am leaning towards the highest possible increase in pensions, but I will not tell you the amount. Fencing with ciphers is easy, but it is also necessary to find income, and most importantly it must be done in the context of the budget, on which I will work together with Minister of Finance Schiller after returning from vacation, and then we will discuss it with the coalition partner.
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The taxation of most employees is now 20.1 percent of gross wages, the government’s program statement says 19 percent in connection with the abolition of super-gross wages, you recently spoke of 15 percent. So what do you prefer?
We will look for solutions to meet the program statement. We have 19 percent there, which is the minimum target, but I would prefer the taxation of employees to be 15 percent. This would be fine.
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However, the CSSD is opposed to reducing income tax to 15 percent of gross wages. It would vote YES with the right-wing opposition to a coalition agreement with the soc. dem. despite?
Editor, don’t look for conflict again. I have told you the direction of my thinking, but it is all a matter of negotiation. I am convinced that we will reach a consensus, so far we in the government have always managed to agree. And I have no doubt that we will succeed this time as well.
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For example, a compromise of 17 percent?
I will not negotiate it soc. dem. through the media, but with them behind closed doors. These are raw ideas that need to be seriously debated and that we need to think about and calculate.
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The abolition of the super-gross wage will cost billions. Where do you get it?
I see reserves in the operation of ministries. Just as ministers are active in raising proposals, I hope they will be in search of savings. Sure, there will be billions, but it’s symbolic. Many external services, for example, can be handled by employees of ministries. I will not hide the fact that drawing up a budget will be difficult. But I repeat, when I started at the Ministry of Finance, the debt was 41.5 percent of GDP, last year it ended at 30 percent. And I am convinced that we will get out of the corona crisis with lower debt than when I went to government.
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We want to show people that they do not have to be afraid to spend and that we will get out of the crisis. Our citizens are flexible and creative. And we must not forget that we are still counting on investments, especially in transport construction, but we also want more money for sports. The main problem will be higher unemployment, so we must focus on retraining people into professions that we permanently lack. But we will have to debate this again.
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