Final Word from Thursday, August 18, 2022

Is it worthwhile reacting to random statements by members of the Fiala cabinet when there is a high likelihood that what is said by one minister today will be disputed by another tomorrow, or by Petr Fiala himself? Finance Min. Zbyněk Stanjura gave himself and his fellow ministers sound advice in mid-July when he told Týdeník Echo that it would only make sense to impose a windfall tax on companies with unexpected profits if the rate were "brutal." The political cost would be high in any event, he said, so the revenue raised should also be high. Regardless of the amount you bring in, he explained, they're going to say that you're betraying the government's policy statement against increasing the tax burden. That made good political sense, but then Stanjura went against his own advice and started talking about reducing or abolishing the subsidy for construction-savings accounts. That would reduce spending by something like Kč 4bn per year. Where this haphazard approach to government policy seems to be headed is toward a crisis tax reform that is indeed brutal and that doesn't please any groups of taxpayers. [ Czech Republic program PM ]