The Government imposes its veto in Congress on all tax cuts

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The Government has laminated all the proposals of the parliamentary groups to lower

on consumer products and services, imposing its veto on the processing of 42 amendments of the total of 59 presented to its bill to modify the rules that regulate

, VAT and

.

The lawyers of Congress have warned in a long report that this practice is "unacceptable", violates the

and threatens the powers of the Legislative.

The Government's veto comes at the height of the debate on taxes, aid to the working class, the contribution made by the wealthiest to the State coffers, the taxes that penalize the middle and low incomes, the efficiency in management of public resources and the tax surplus on account of inflation.

The Executive alleges, to prevent the proposals of the parliamentary formations from being debated and voted on, that they would cause a "decrease in income, affecting both present and future Budgets."

The Government's veto extends to all the amendments presented by the groups - with the exception of those signed by PSOE and United We Can - which propose, among other measures, the reduction to 4% of the VAT applicable to yogurts and fermented milks as well as to the essential gluten-free foods in the celiac diet;

Internet services for single-parent households or in a situation of poverty;

home help, telecare, day and night center and private residential care and entrance fees to libraries, archives, museums, art galleries, cinemas, theatres, circuses and concerts.

Those that propose to place the tax on veterinary services as well as funeral and cremation taxes at 10% have also been nipped in the bud;

that of hair prostheses or wigs when prescribed by a doctor;

hairdressing, barbershop and beauty services;

that of musical instruments intended for teaching and that of works in real estate to improve accessibility for people with disabilities and, at 0%, the tax on donations to non-profit entities.

strong report

In view of the massive veto, the lawyer assigned to the Treasury Commission, the constitutionalist

, has issued a forceful report in which he dismisses as "unacceptable" that the Government limits "in a very relevant way" the legislative power until the point of "annulling" it by extending its veto power "to any modification of a rule regulating income."

"If the Government's position is accepted," he says, "the legislative role of the Courts in tax regulations would be restricted only to those amendments that involve more revenue or do not involve any change in the estimated collection figure."

It also adds that the statement that income is reduced "is not a fact that is susceptible to certainty, but to probability" because income is always an approximate calculation.

In this sense, the impossibility of arguing without a doubt that the amendments proposed by the groups will cause a specific reduction in collection is evident.

In any case, the report highlights, in accordance with the doctrine of the Constitutional Court, that the veto due to a decrease in income must always refer to the Budget in force and in this case, in the amendments that the Government intends to short-circuit "there is no affectation to the Current budget”, in fact, many of them, mainly those proposed by ERC, specify that their entry into force should be on January 1, 2023 and, even, in the justification that accompanies them, it is detailed with data how certain VAT reductions lead to higher collection.

In view of the legal report, the

, dominated by PSOE and UP, will have to make one last decision: contradict the Government or, most likely, support its veto.

In the latter case, the groups will go to the Large Table, headed by the president of the Chamber

, and in which the two government formations also have a majority.

In case of rejection also in this instance, they value resorting to the Constitutional.

It is the procedure that, for example, the representative of the PDeCAT,

, followed when the Executive tried to veto his amendments to the tax on financial transactions and the tax on digital services.

"It was also," he explains, "a manifestly irregular situation."

Bel warned against resorting to the TC and forced the withdrawal of the government veto.

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