Proposition 51K1005

Projet de loi portant confirmation des arrêtés royaux des 15 décembre 2003 et 23 janvier 2004 modifiant, en matière de précompte professionnel, l'AR/CIR 92.

General information ¶

Submitted by

PS | SP MR Open Vld Vooruit Purple Ⅰ

Submission date

April 5, 2004

Official page

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Status

Adopted

Requirement

Simple

Subjects

direct tax tax on income

Voting ¶

Voted to adopt

Vooruit Ecolo PS | SP Open Vld MR

Voted to reject

CD&V LE N-VA VB

Party dissidents ¶

• Gerolf Annemans (VB) abstained from voting.
• Simonne Creyf (CD&V) abstained from voting.

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Discussion ¶

May 13, 2004 | Plenary session (Chamber of representatives)

Full source

Mr. Speaker, colleagues, in accordance with Article 275, § 3 of the 1992 WIB, the royal decrees concerning the corporate advance tax must be ratified by law as soon as possible.

The Royal Decrees contain the following measures: indexation of the scales of corporate advance tax, increase of the additional taxes from 6.7 to 7%, adaptation to the tax reform, adjustments to the decisions of the Council of Ministers of 14 October 2003, adaptation under the Program Act of 24 December 2003 and the Act of 13 March 2003 on supplementary pensions, application of the 75% rule for some non-residents, re-qualification of rental income of business managers and corporate advance tax on copyright and related rights.

This draft law aims to ⁇ this ratification. In the past, this ratification was delayed somewhat, but this is no longer the case. The bill was approved by a large majority in the Chamber Committee. The opposition took up this bill in the committee meetings to argue that the tax pressure in Belgium does not decrease, that the budget is not balanced, that the debt ratio decreases too little and that the economy is doing bad. The opposition blamed the government parties for this.

As far as the report is concerned, Mr. Speaker, and now I speak on behalf of the VLD group.

Mr. Tommelein, I take note that you are now speaking on behalf of the VLD. However, I can ask you to be concise.

Mr. Speaker, on behalf of the VLD group, I see it as my duty to replicate the story of the opposition, by placing things in their proper context. Their

It is a fact that in this country we are increasingly moving in the right direction. Our neighboring countries the Netherlands, France and Germany are the best reference points for evaluating our policies. Colleagues, in recent years the economic growth in Belgium has been greater than in the surrounding countries. While other European countries seem to be grossing in budget deficits, the budget in Belgium has been balanced for the fifth year in a row.

The CD&V opposition is therefore still unwavering milk about the acquisition of the Belgacom pension fund, but Eurostat has approved this operation. Just like in a football game, the goal or not the goal. It is not the players who decide about it, but the referee decides whether a goal has been effectively scored. Budgeting is not affected. They are drawn up according to the same rules as in all other European countries.

Dear colleagues, the tax pressure on labor on the wage amount effectively drops from more than 52% in 1999 to 42% after four years of governmentVerhofstadt. Everyone can read this on their tax note. In the following years, 2004, 2005 and 2006, this will become more and more clear to the people. By increasing the additional taxes from 6.7% to 7%, the tax reduction at the incubation will be even more sensible among the people because they will receive more and more in the coming years based on the decisions that this government has taken. Their

Mr. De Crem, it shows little respect for the traditional CVP voter to blame today over the fact that the previous government and the current government have not fully removed the consequences of forty years of CVP policy. It is about your policies, including eight years that of Jean-Luc Dehaene. CD&V claims at high and at low that the party is not against tax cuts. I even want to believe you on that point. You are not against tax cuts. However, you also want more money for child allowance. You want more money to live. You want more money for education. You want more money everywhere. The question is where you will get that money. Their

Ladies and gentlemen of CD&V, I tell you that economics is the basis of everything. Without tax cuts, you will not be able to boost the economy. Without tax cuts, there would be no greater economic growth in our country than in neighboring countries. Without tax cuts, there would be even more unemployment. Without tax cuts — and this is very recent — there would have been no higher tax revenues for the first quarter of 2004. Their

As a VLD, I am very proud that the government has made tax cuts a priority, including in the negotiations of this government. Mr. De Crem, since government money is not unlimited, choices must be made. You do not make choices. In fact, all the data available today shows that this government with the VLD made the right choices.

We have abolished the crisis tax that you have introduced. We indexed the tax scales. We have abolished tax discrimination between married and unmarried persons. We have reduced the corporate tax rate from 40% to 34%, for SMEs even to 24%. We have reduced the donation rights in the Flemish government. We have reduced the registration fees. Mr. De Crem, we have also continued to make the formation of the current government a priority of continuing the tax reduction and a reduction of the tax on labour. We have made this a priority and we will continue to do so, Mrs D'Hondt.

I tell you that the VLD will continue to prioritize tax cuts until the taxes in our country are at an acceptable level. Business should not be punished. Work must be rewarded. After all, only a strong economy can keep your call for more money for everything possible.

I had the impression that Hendrik Bogaert wanted to speak without being registered. From the first moment Mr. Tommelein began to speak, I noticed that a replica from Mr. Bogaert would follow.

Mr. Speaker, before colleague Bogaert begins, I would like to give you a lecture from a letter sent to me and that in any case Mr. Tommelein — "Who do I have on the line? Bart Tommelein,” said the prime minister.

That person writes to me the following: "Compared to last year, our monthly net pension has not increased so much. The seven solidarity allowances increased slightly, although the advance of the pension decreased by 4.41 euros, but the advance of the holiday fee increased by 66.69 euros. Our net holiday fee is 59,5 euros less than last year. On May 10, we received our ticket for the year 2003. Last year 25,8 euros were repaid. This year, with the same percentage on the municipal tax" - which in the future will increase because that person lives in Ghent with the VLD in the administration but fears the worst - "we must already pay an additional 116,59 euros. And the purple government, however, continues to hammer on the tax cuts they have achieved. I voted for the CD&V last time, but you, Mr. De Crem, from now on have my voice and that of everyone I know." was signed... at 9050 Gentbrugge-Gent. And you now.

Is that a statement, Mr. De Crem, or a communication?

The truth is so multiple. Mr. Tante, if I didn’t know you, I could almost give you the right.

Mr. Speaker, Mr. Minister, colleagues, Mr. Tommelein just held a speech and there was no one in the hemisphere who was able to get the two hands together, not even his own group. I think this speaks to the situation in which Mr. Tommelein is today. He is worse than a crying in the desert, he is a crying in a ⁇ large desert. There is no one even listening to what he has to say in terms of taxes and tax pressure.

What is shown here today is symptomatic of the general malaise of the VLD and of what the VLD has not done in recent years, contrary to the promises. I was in the market of Oostende this morning, Mr. Tommelein, and there it was said that VLD actually means "Many Let Do". Indeed, this party has done a lot. She has been tough before the negotiations and today, after the negotiations, but during the negotiations she has very quickly given in to Di Rupo and the PS. For that, she will probably pay the lease on June 13.

In terms of the social status of the self-employed, we talked about a historical agreement. It had never happened that such progress would be made. Today we find that the social status of the self-employed is a kind of plow chick, the plow chick of purple: very much water and very little meat.

The same goes for the budget deficit. It is stated in your program that there should be no euro shortage. We have had a long discussion on this, including in the committee. I will immediately give you proof that there is indeed a deficit in your federal budget. Total net government debt, Mr. Tommelein, increased from late 1999 to late 2003. You need to convince me and the rest of the hemisphere how it can be that the net outstanding debt rises if there is a budget surplus every year. You will have to explain it technically. It is the best proof that for four years in a row there has indeed been a deficit in the federal government budget.

The amount is not insignificant, it is about 11 billion euros. When you came to power, the total public debt amounted to 246 billion euros. You have – don’t deny it, Mr. Daems – repaid 11 billion euros of debt. That’s because you realized deficits on the federal budget, otherwise you can’t get to these numbers. This is all stated in the explanation on budgetary control. You need to read it well. What lies ahead here is symbolic of the failure of purple and the weak position of the VLD in this government.

The average tax pressure does not decrease at all in Belgium, the average tax pressure has increased. The average tax pressure of Verhofstadt I is 46.2 percent, which is higher than the average tax pressure of Dehaene II. I quote figures from the European Commission. The government that hit the highest record was the Verhofstadt government in 2002 with 46.6 percent. Since the Second World War, there has been no government that has imposed such a high tax burden on its population. I am not going to repeat the story over and over again, but you know that in the neighboring countries in the last three years the tax pressure has since decreased significantly, except in Belgium. In the meantime, we have won the bronze medal in terms of tax pressure. Our technicians have calculated that if purple remains in power for three or four years, we get the silver and also the gold medal.

What is ahead here is a repair KB because we have put a lot of pressure on the government. We went to the State Council and said that what is present here cannot be done. There are indeed some reductions in terms of personal tax. You repeat that constantly and it is correct that the rates have been reduced. On the other hand, you have collected new money for the same amount of euro. Tax revenue increased by 7.5% in the first three months of the year. Please explain to me, Mr. Tommelein, how this can be done. If the economic growth is still 2 percent, how can you ⁇ 7.5 percent higher tax revenues? That’s because you’re raising the tax pressure, because you’re raising the excise duties.

You know from the Netherlands "the tenth of Kok", which was about ten cents in golden expressed per liter of gasoline. We also have a tenth, but it is not ten euro cents, but ten euros. Not even a dozenth of fientje. In the program law and in Raversijde it was decided that in 2007 there will be 10 euros per tank burst. Ladies and gentlemen, think of every tank shift at Verhofstadt, think of purple because per tank shift you put a ten-euro bill in the scale due to the tax increase in terms of gasoline and diesel excise duties.

You are constantly increasing the tax and on the other hand you should in principle reduce the taxes. Instead of the reduction of the personal tax, here is now a KB for which it says that the promised reduction of the personal burden is postponed until 2006. What a cynicism! What do you actually do? You are already charging taxes on the pump to the people and the reduction of the personal tax that should come in compensation, you postpone to 2006.

People feel that in their wallets. That’s why people are so angry at you, Mr. Tommelein. That’s why people are so angry at the VLD today. They already have to pay today through an increase in taxes and the tax reduction will not come until much later, in 2006, if it will ever come there if you remain in power. That is unacceptable.

This royal decree actually consists in asking for a interest-free loan from 1.2 million families. The question is whether it is a small or large interest-free loan. It is a very large interest-free loan. It is about 1.1 billion euros, a huge amount, which you take away from the families, Mr. Tommelein. You are applying for an interest-free loan to the families. However, families are absolutely entitled to that money.

Therefore, it is about 850 euros per family in tax cuts that you are not implementing now, while the people at the pump are already paying for a more expensive gasoline. What a cynicism! It is therefore not surprising that the statistics we constantly publish are confirmed by the OECD and the European Commission, in particular that the tax burden under your government is constantly increasing.

Then there is another very associative component to this royal decision. Also, the corporate advance fee for some replacement income is drawn, while that did not exist before. Now you ask that these people—the career breakers, the people with time credit, the people with parental leave—company advance fee, an interest-free loan, be paid to Verhofstadt and Co. I would like to say that this royal decision is ⁇ antisocial.

I would like to replicate for a moment on the possible replica you will give. You will say that you had predicted all this in the year 2001. They had already recorded what they were going to do in 2003, 2004, 2005 and 2006. That is the famous table 15, to which you may refer. The Minister also said in 2001 the following. I will quote from the report of that time, Mr. Tommelein, so that you can very well get it in your ears. I quote: “As long as the budgetary situation makes it possible, the Minister reiterates his intention to include the various measures as soon as possible in the corporate advantages so that the employees can enjoy the tax advantages at the same rate as the self-employed. They can immediately adjust their advance payments to all measures taken within the framework of the reform.” Today we must see that all the money has been spent to make this burden reduction. However, our economy is in particular in need of this. You will not do it. It will not be implemented until 2006. In the meantime, people are paying for the pump. You fill your greenhouses, you fill your shortages and the burden reduction comes only much later. You have let yourself do. The VLD stands for "Many Let Do", but what stands out here today, tires any imagination.

Finally, I will give you a list of all the tax increases you have pursued in recent months by the Parliament or the Council of Ministers:

111 million euros of the opt-outs for the settlement of the company advance fee and advance payments. I will cite my source: "General Explanation of the Budget", page 119. Retention of corporate advance tax of 11,08%. Primary disability, maternity and paternity leave, 78 million euros, page 121 of the General Explanation. Retention corporate advance fee of 10.1% on career break and 17.1% on part-time formulas. This will raise 67 million euros. The extension of the non-indexation of the benefit for occupational accidents to result in 16 to 20% disability. 24 million euros will be raised. Increasing the energy contribution, Mr Tommelein, 127 million euros will be raised by you. Tax on the effects of tounder, 92 million euros. I will complete the list for a moment so that you can see for yourself how the rage taxation is hitting under your policy. Increases in excise taxes, 144.8 million euros. Click fund gasoline, 119 million euros. Diesel click fund, 66.6 million euros.

That is the total list of 902 million euros of tax increases you are passing through. You say that there are tax cuts. You say the personal tax will be reduced. So today we are going to decide to postpone the compensation for all those increases I list here—people are entitled to a reduction against it in order to remain the same—by two years, Mr. Tommelein. People are rightly afraid that the delay will be delayed. I say it again, VLD: “Many Let Do.” It is a shame that you want to hunt this through Parliament today.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to reply to Mr. Bogert.

Mr Bogert, you continue to insist that the tax burden in Belgium has decreased. You may have noticed that I was talking about tax pressure on labor. I have already stated clearly in the Chamber that you are trying to deceive people with this. You use macro-economic data. You use a ratio between gross domestic product and tax revenues even though you know perfectly that you are handling figures of revenues from 2001-2001 that were the result of strong economic growth in 2000.

Mr. Bogert, you still want to turn the people a wheel in front of the eyes. I note that CD&V makes certain choices. CD&V will reduce the personal tax in the same way as the VLD has done, will lower the excise duties, will abolish the effects of tounder and will spend much more money. Mr. Bogaert, if I follow your reasoning, it means that a budget deficit will be greater than that of Germany, France and the Netherlands combined.