The government has not yet convinced its Social Christian and Correísta legislative allies to accept a permanent increase to 13% corresponding to value added tax (VAT), and two additional points temporarily to deal with the internal armed conflict, social crisis and the economy.

Without certain political support at the plenary session, and with the hope that there will be coincidences along the way in the financing of the fight against terrorist groups, in the National Assembly this Saturday, January 27, starting at 9 a.m., it will be installed to virtually process the proposal of the executive power in the first debate .

For the first discussion, three reports on the proposal of the Executive Committee were presented, but the text prepared by the chairwoman Valentina Centeno was accepted with five votes, where a permanent increase of VAT to 13% is proposed; but it will temporarily increase by an additional two percentage points, reaching 15%.

With a ‘mixed increase’ of VAT, the report for the first debate of the draft law on dealing with internal armed conflicts was approved

Other measures proposed by the blocs are also included in the text, and refer to a 5% tax on extraordinary profits that had a profit growth of 50% or more until 2022; tax on profits of financial system banks; to change the tax rate on the outflow of foreign currency, but not higher than 5%, and the provisions that VAT refund to persons with disabilities, older adults and exporters will only continue when the receiving agent submits the appropriate declaration and pays the appropriate tax.

As for this last proposal considered in one general provision, legislator Cristhian Vega (RC), He asserted that the text draws attention because it stipulates the return of VAT to elderly persons, persons with disabilities and exporters, because the document establishes that VAT can be returned only to elderly persons and persons with disabilities, when the person who issued the invoice has declared and paid. This measure is irresponsible, because the cross-checking of data is the responsibility of the Tax Administration, not the user of the tax refund.

Legislator Valentina Centeno (ADN), said that they are still optimistic and that they hope that consensus points can be reached and called on the conscience of their political allies because these are economic measures that worked in 2016 in which incomes did not decrease, the economy did not decrease and final consumer prices prices are not rising because it is necessary to carry out control in order to avoid speculation. He indicated that there is still room for dialogue with all political sectors of the Assembly.

“There’s still a lot of material to cut,” Centeno stressed, speaking of the votes for the majority report, and indicated he would not move forward or close doors and opportunities.

The state representative expressed her regret that this time the majority report of the third urgent economic project did not receive the support of the UOP and the Republic of Croatia, and thus, she says, the panorama is undoubtedly complicated because it does not have her support. allies. , but “I believe that we can reach a consensus, the door remains open, it will not be defined until the last moment, which means that we will remain with a clear conscience that we were on the right side of history, on the side that “fought to suppress and eradicate organized crime, narco-terrorism and violence and insecurity”.

Blasco Luna, Vice President of the Commission for Economic Developmenthe hopes that there will be openness and that the minority reports presented by both the RC and the PSC will be taken into account, and that they will be able to produce a consensus report in which Correismo’s condition is to remove the VAT increase from the project, and to approve other alternatives for financing the war as which is an increase in ISD, taxes on large wealth and property, tax on the profits of large companies, will enable a higher collection than what the Government is aiming for with taxes.

He stated that at the moment there are more than 70 legislators who are not there to promote the VAT increase, and he pointed out the position of the PSC that there will be no support for raising taxes, and in the same way the Citizen Revolution bloc and the Pachakutik bloc. With these votes, the project can be rejected and archived in another discussion.

Christian Socialist Jorge Acaiturri from the PSC He said that submitting the first hearing is not the way out, but opening the hearing and waiting for the second report that includes alternatives that allow the government to get funds to deal with the internal conflict.

He described that the difference is not whether the Government should or should not have these resources, but how these resources should be disposed of, and for this the PSC made a proposal according to the economic and social situation in the country where around An. an additional $1,080 million which includes the sale of non-productive assets, downsizing the government, channeling subsidies, selling non-productive assets, restructuring external debt and taking advantage of the public consultation to include ITT issues to see if oil continues to be exploited and that these resources are used to finance security , education and health.

Jaime Guevara from the independent group He also predicted that he would not support the VAT increase, despite the amendments to the Executive Committee’s proposal, and suggested that citizens be consulted again about the exploitation of oil block 43 of the ITT, and that this would not be necessary. to intervene. to the Ecuadorians.

He repeated that an increase in VAT would not be the most optimal measure because it would burden citizens with more taxes, as it is a tax with a greater spiral of price increases. Pushing this increase is part of the recipe of the International Monetary Fund, to ensure the payment of the loans that will be granted.