ON THURSDAY THE SUPPORT MEASURES TO STOP THE CRISIS - WHERE IS THE PACKAGE OF THE MINISTRY OF FINANCE MOVING - Filenews 25/3 by Eleftheria Paizanou
The final touches to the package of support measures from high fuel prices are being put by the government's economic staff. The Ministry of Finance, since the first day the crisis broke out in the Middle East, has been closely monitoring the situation, preparing various scenarios to deal with the effects, due to the rally recorded in the price of oil, which has recently been around 100 dollars per barrel.
Although inflation is still at low levels, the state, seeing the increases in fuel prices, is trying to prevent the effects.
According to information from "F", the competent ministry has prepared a package of measures, which will be finalized in the next few hours. In fact, as we are informed, the measures will probably be put before the meeting of the Council of Ministers on Thursday with the aim of being approved and taking the path of Parliament as soon as possible. It is worth noting that the announcement of the government measures will be made by the President of the Republic himself, Nikos Christodoulides, who will make a speech.
The President of the Republic informed the leaders
However, during the recent session of the National Council, President Christodoulidis informed the leaders of the parties that three bills related to consumer relief measures will be sent to Parliament. As he told them, the measures will be targeted and will move in the direction of the measures taken in 2023, to deal with the energy crisis due to the Ukrainian issue. At the same time, he reportedly said that if the war in the Middle East continues, things will be difficult. There are estimates that, if hostilities continue at the same pace, the price of oil will jump to $250 per barrel. It should be noted that one of the measures being considered is the reinstatement of the reduction of the consumption tax on fuel. During the Ukrainian crisis, with the measures taken, fuel prices were reduced by 8.32 cents per liter. In addition to this measure, something additional is being considered for vulnerable groups of the population, to relieve the increased cost of energy.
Supporting businesses
Measures to support businesses that have been affected by the war are also on the table. The measures will be in line with those taken during the coronavirus pandemic, when the state supplemented the earnings of employees to keep businesses open. It is possible that this measure will be applied to businesses in the tourism sector. Yesterday, the Minister of Labour, Marinos Mousiouttas, stated that the Government and the Ministry of Labour are studying the current situation in which the tourism industry of the country has fallen due to the war raging in the Middle East, so that after evaluating the current data, there will be a corresponding reaction,
In addition, the scenario of increasing the number of instalments in the plan to regulate overdue contributions to the Social Insurance Fund, from 48 provided for in the bill to 54, is also being examined. A relevant request was submitted by the parties yesterday, during the discussion of the relevant bill in the parliamentary Labour Committee.
And other products at zero VAT
Another measure to be taken is to expand the list of products to which zero VAT is applied. The Consumer Protection Service, which used data from e-kalathi, has already found that increases were observed in some products. In particular, some product categories record increases of more than 10%. Increases are found in specific categories, such as cheese products, frozen pasta-pies, chocolates and biscuits. However, by the end of the year, VAT will be zero for baby and family care items, such as baby milk (liquid and powdered), baby diapers, adult diapers, as well as feminine hygiene protection products, such as tampons, sanitary napkins and incontinence pads. The zero VAT rate also applies to a wide range of fresh or simply chilled vegetables. Regarding the price of electricity, the electricity subsidy for vulnerable groups of the population will continue until the end of the year.
Voices of parties for measures
DISY and DIKO called on the government to take measures to support households. DISY MP Onoufrios Koullas said that an emergency plan to support households and the economy is required, without delay, to contain economic activity and avoid greater losses afterwards. He stressed that responsibility and prudence are required from everyone, so that the economy is not further disturbed by irresponsible and populist behaviours. Besides, the president of DIKO, Nikolas Papadopoulos, presented 20 measures to deal with high prices and reduce the cost of living. As he noted, the package of measures aims to shield the purchasing power of citizens, to strengthen transparency and competition in the market, as well as to create conditions for sustainable development with a social sign. Among the measures proposed are the imposition of a ceiling on food prices, the automatic reduction of VAT on electricity in times of crisis, the increase in production from renewables, the targeted subsidy of fuel prices and a substantial subsidy program for electric cars.
