Opposition: Coalition Drawing Up Budget in Wrong Way (2)

Bratislava, 21 August (TASR) - The opposition Freedom and Solidarity (SaS) and Progressive Slovakia (PS) parties have concurred that the coalition is drawing up the 2027 budget in an incorrect manner: it shouldn't be filled with election promises, but should support economic growth and halt the country's rising debt, while the state shouldn't increase taxes, but cut its own spending instead. "It is crystal clear that we'll witness blatant blackmail within the coalition over the budget. Premier Robert Fico (Smer-SD) could ultimately go as far as to link the budget vote to a vote of confidence in the government in order to force Voice-SD and the Slovak National Party (SNS) to vote in favour out of fear of a snap election," said SaS leader Branislav Groehling. According to Groehling, another round of fiscal consolidation mustn't be paid for again by the public and entrepreneurs. "Fico's recipe is always the same. Not enough money? Let's raise taxes. Still not enough? Let's increase compulsory levies and fees, or come up with a new tax. SaS is saying it clearly: enough is enough. The budget must support economic growth, and the state must finally start saving [on itself], not the public," he stressed. According to SaS vice-chair Marian Viskupic, Slovakia doesn't need a pre-election budget full of political promises. "We need a budget that will bring about substantial cuts in state spending, while also helping Slovakia's decimated economy. Unfortunately, the coalition's political courage to cut spending, curb corruption and take unpopular but urgently needed measures is at freezing point," stated Viskupic. According to him, SaS would take the opposite approach. "We wouldn't start by asking which tax to increase next, but where the state can make savings. We'd reduce the state's administrative apparatus by at least 10 percent. We'd scrap unnecessary structures, including the Tourism and Sport Ministry and the Investment, Regional Development and Informatics Ministry in its current form, and transfer their essential powers to existing ministries. We'd target social aid more effectively, so that the money would go primarily to those who really need it," he explained. PS also criticised the coalition's approach to drawing up the budget. "The budget's priorities should be to kick-start the economy, halt the record debt and reduce the tax and social burden on labour so that people will have more money in their pockets. They're doing just the opposite," stated MP Stefan Kiss (PS), who also called on the government and the finance minister to take the necessary measures. According to Finance Minister Ladislav Kamenicky (Smer-SD), claims that preparations for the 2027 budget haven't yet begun are untrue. "This disparages the work of all the Finance Ministry staff who have already been involved in drawing up the budget for many weeks," he said on social media. "As in previous years, we're holding talks with our coalition partners, and, until we reach an agreement, I have no intention of speculating about the outcome. When we agree on something, I'll be happy to share the details, just as I've done every year," added Kamenicky. NOTE: This story has been extended to include the final two paragraphs. jrg/ko/df