Churches returns to stress the Government with its fiscal offensive

• Taxation.Churches appeals to the "fiscal patriotism" of the wealthy to raise taxes: "They are willing to exercise their solidarity"
• Live.Coronavirus in Spain

United Podemos has already decided the next battle to go within the Government: the tax on the wealthy . Pablo Iglesias, second vice president of the Executive, presents this new assessment as one of the measures on which to structure the post-coronavirus country. This creation of a new tax is rejected by the Minister of Finance, María Jesús Montero, because although it contemplates an increase in taxes on the highest incomes, she opts to reform existing rates such as Heritage, Personal Income Tax or even Companies.

The Government is determined to undertake "wealth-oriented" taxation, but differences emerge in moving from theory to practice. Iglesias, despite learning of the Treasury's opposition to its "reconstruction rate," insisted yesterday in the Senate. "It is a social consensus that instruments such as a reconstruction tax are necessary that allow the great fortunes, who are desiring it, to exercise their solidarity with Spain , contributing resources directly to the public coffers."

The message was not trivial. It was produced in parliamentary headquarters and just 48 hours after Montero's refusal to create a new tax . The relationship between the vice president and the head of the Treasury has been strained in recent weeks as a result of several dialectical clashes and denials between the two on account of the implementation of the minimum vital income or the lack of confinement of children.

But, above all, because this new tax for the rich gives the United We can a window to settle in political positions from which it has distanced itself by entering the Government: tax on the rich to favor the vulnerable while the economic ministers of the PSOE are located on the other side, is his thesis .

Iglesias is aware of the Treasury's rejection of his proposal. Montero wielded it publicly on Tuesday. From their Department, they point out that the Spanish tax system " already has the necessary tools to make those who have the most pay more ", referring at all times to what Montero pointed out. "It can be done through the Estate Tax, Personal Income Tax or even with Companies", they emphasize.

Despite the contrary opinion of the Treasury to the creation of a specific tax, Iglesias maintains the pulse, even at the risk of sowing a new notch of tension in the coalition. It is not the first time that their postulates collide with those defended by the ministers Montero or Nadia Calviño. “If we lower the taxes to those who have the most, we will have worse Health and Education. Everyone should agree to have a tax system that prepares Spain for any eventuality such as Covid-19. Spanish society is asking for an exercise in fiscal patriotism ».

Podemos wants to implement this "reconstruction rate" to replace the current Wealth Tax. It would introduce a progressive tax, between 2% and 3.5%, to assets that exceed one million euros and, according to purple calculations, would contribute about 11,000 million to public coffers. The figure seems too optimistic, "unreal" in the opinion of prosecutors . "Ensuring that it will raise almost half of what companies contribute ... It seems too much to us," they explain from the Registry of Fiscal Advisory Economists (REAF).

Sánchez-Iglesias Agreement

In the midst of this confrontation of positions between the Social Vice-Presidency and the Treasury, United Podemos sources explained yesterday that this tax on the large fortunes they raise will have the support of the PSOE in the Reconstruction Commission of the Congress of Deputies, although for now not will go to the Council of Ministers. It is, according to these sources, what Pedro Sánchez and Pablo Iglesias would have agreed . Once again, the two, isolated from the rest of the ministers, establishing the steps to be taken in situations that can generate conflicts that erode the government coalition.

Government sources indicate that this pact would intend to decaffeinate the proposal and the impetus of Podemos, since they consider that in that parliamentary commission it would be difficult, a priori, to support formations such as the PP, Ciudadanos, PNV or JxCat. In addition, it could be diluted in the multitude of issues and approaches that the formations can expose. However, it does give the purple formation a window to expose and defend its proposal. Having all the leading role in the defense of a measure that, in the midst of an economic crisis of the entity caused by the coronavirus, it is easy for it to have social acceptance.

But Iglesias's tax offensive does not only contemplate the tax on large fortunes . The second vice president wants “reforms in the unequal treatment that now have the incomes of work and the incomes of capital. Some unacceptable tax privileges could also be modified in an advanced democracy, since it is currently the big companies and the highest incomes that mainly benefit from them ”.

In this sense, Iglesias explained that Spain has a "deficit of between 5 and 7 points" of Gross Domestic Product in fiscal pressure compared to the European average and that it is necessary to reduce that difference. That is, in his opinion there is scope to raise taxes by at least 60,000 million. That does not mean that the Government is going to apply a rise of this magnitude, because for this it would be necessary to touch all the tax figures and a fiscal reform in the medium and long term. But it does make clear the predisposition of Podemos to apply a notable increase in the tax burden, and this is confirmed by sources in the training: « United Podemos can bet on raising taxes , and a good example is the creation of the tax on large fortunes. We consider it fair that those who have the most contribute more ”.

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