Finance
04.11.2010
A panel of German economic experts has significantly upped its forecast for the country's tax revenue over the next two years, prompting conservative politicians to call for an expedited debate on tax cuts.
A stronger-than-expected economic recovery in 2010 led German authorities on Thursday to raise their outlook for federal, state and local tax revenue from 2010 through 2012 by a total of 61 billion euros ($86.8 billion).
The announcement quickly led Bavarian Finance Minister Georg Fahrenschon, a member of the conservative Christian Social Union (CSU), to call for an immediate discussion on cutting taxes.
"The economy is improving, the new prognoses are surprisingly good, and I think in light of this development there can't be any holdup in tax policy," he told public broadcaster Deutschlandfunk.
Budget cuts come first
But Chancellor Angela Merkel has resisted calls to cut taxes, saying the government's first priority should be cutting the state budget.
"In this year, we will accrue 50 billion euros more of debt," she told reporters on Thursday. "That's a debt level that we haven't had in decades."
Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble echoed Merkel's sentiment, saying the expected increase in tax revenue only showed that Germany's economic situation was not as dramatic as was previously thought.
"We're on the right path (with budget cuts)" he said in Berlin on Thursday. "It's difficult, but we will carry on."...
Merkel under pressure to raise tax for rich Germans (click title to entry - thank you)
Wednesday, 25 August 2010 04:37
By Dave Graham
As an age of austerity looms for some of Germany’s poorest citizens, pressure is growing to impose higher taxes on the richest, setting the scene for fresh conflict in Chancellor Angela Merkel’s ruling coalition.
Thousands have taken to the streets this summer to demonstrate against plans by Merkel’s centre-right government to cut billions of euros in spending on the unemployed without imposing a similar burden on the other end of society.
Some senior figures from her conservative Christian Democrats (CDU) have urged Merkel to consider higher taxes for the rich, lest a steady slide in the administration’s popularity accelerate into freefall before six state elections next year....
