Podľa Radovana Ďuranu z INESS môžu výpadky v daňových
príjmoch kompenzovať úspory na strane verejných výdavkov. Ako však povedal pre
The Slovak Spectator dňa 14.4. 2009, je skeptický, že vláda k takémuto
kroku pristúpi, pretože ak neobmedzí veľké infraštruktúrne projekty, musela by
škrtať najmä na mzdách zamestnancov vo verejnej správe.
Maintaining the public finance deficit below three percent
of GDP is the government’s priority in the economic area, according to a draft
of the Programme of Stability for Slovakia for 2008-12 that has been submitted
for inter-ministerial comment, reported the TASR newswire.
However, analysts who were asked for comments by TASR are sceptical
as to whether the Cabinet will manage to meet this Maastricht criterion. According to Radovan Ďurana of the
Institute for Economic and Social Studies (INESS), drops in tax revenues could
only be offset by savings amounting to billions of euros.
“However, I’m sceptical about the government’s ability to find such huge
savings. Unless they are at the expense of large-scale infrastructure projects,
the reserves would have to be made at the expense of wages in the public sector
and in the area of public procurement,” said Ďurana.
ČSOB bank analyst Silvia Čechovičová said that public procurement in Slovakia
is overpriced without good reason. It is questionable, however, whether in
these times of expected recession the state should insist on fulfilling the
Maastricht criterion regarding the public finance deficit.
“As long as increasing the deficit leads to strengthening the economy’s
competitiveness, then it makes sense. However, if the deficit goes up as a
result of pouring funds into inefficient enterprises or subsidising one sector
at the expense of another, then it’s a negative thing,” said Čechovičová, who
expects that Slovakia’s public deficit in 2009 will stand at 3.8 percent of
GDP.
Finance Minister Ján Počiatek has recently admitted that the
objective of keeping the public finance deficit under three percent of GDP may
not be met.
“If the fall in the EU and the entire world is much higher
than currently expected, then we’ll have to re-evaluate these goals, too. Views
concerning this issue are developing and the attitude of the (European)
Commission to the three-percent threshold may be partially modified,” said
Počiatek. TASR
Compiled by Zuzana
Vilikovská from press reports
The
Slovak Spectator, 14 Apr 2009
