Chile’s left-wing presidential candidate Gabriel Boric has promised fiscal prudence in an attempt to win over moderate voters who will be key in the country’s second round on December 19.
Efficient public spending represents one of the main points of an addendum to plans that will be unveiled, Boric said at a campaign event on Wednesday. If elected, Boric assured that he will stabilize debt levels as a percentage of gross domestic product at the end of his term.
“Our Government, we know, is going to assume an economy that is probably overheated, with the inflationary pressures that we have already seen.”, dijo Boric. “What we are going to do, with which we commit ourselves, is to have a clear trajectory of fiscal consolidation”.
Boric and his conservative rival, GOP founder José Antonio Kast, are adjusting their proposals with the intention of wooing the moderate and undecided electorate before the second round.
On Tuesday, Kast changed his tune on environmental issues and women’s rights, while pledging to gradually reduce taxes. With the election at stake is the future of Chile’s economic model, which has led to decades of growth, but has also generated a lot of inequality.
Including women and youth in the workforce will be a top priority, Boric noted. Other changes such as minimum wage increases and shorter working hours will be made gradually, he said, adding that small businesses will not pay more taxes.
Boric said the addendum will have revised plans to boost tax revenue in the coming years, a central part of its commitment to improve public services.
Chile’s economy is expected to grow around 11% in 2021, driven by emergency spending from the pandemic and early pension withdrawals. Some private sector analysts say the combination of political uncertainty, higher interest rates and reduced stimulus will lead to a recession by the end of next year.
“The year 2022 is going to be an economically complex year “, dijo Boric. “We are preparing ourselves in the best possible way for this scenario ”.
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