Vittorio Grilli can’t keep quite any longer: “There’s a 5.5billions net wealth increase flowing in the wallets of Italians, among lower deductions and decreasing tax rates”.
The “Stability Law”, a law bill (although not entitled to full fledged bill status) is being challenged by all parties, and might experience quite a bumpy road ahead.
Its main supporter (as well as its main conceiver and drafter) is the Economy Minister Mr Vittorio Grilli who has been since several weeks spending words to depict reality different from what it actually is.
Not satisfied by its early statements where he was forecasting an increase of internal demand as a consequence of the bill (although not entitled to full fledged bill status) the Economy Minister, in Tokio for some useless and expensive FMI meeting, a first muttered about “complex technicalities” to those who where pointing out that lower reductions and deductions will impact first and with retroactive effect (farewell to Statuto del Contribuente, Tax Payer’s declaration) and only later in fiscal year 2013 the 1% rate cut on the two lower income tax thresholds will apply.
Then, showing despise toward so-called tax payers, he tried to demonstrate that the bill will eventually bring money to Italians’ wallets.
Still few days ago Grilli appointed himself as “Civil Servant” although, as usual in these endeavours, the real Servants are those who, once more, will get the bill; despite the Minister’s goodwill, the figures he reports do not get along with reality.
Frankly, I find annoying that, after delivering the nth fiscal blow, someone tries to convince tax payers they will benefit from it, even more they will get money back.
Provided that to be taken in account should not only be the income tax adjustments but also, for instance, VAT increase and Tobin Tax introduction, how can possibly Grilli claim money will go back to Italian’s wallets?
Let’s suppose for a second the net effect is not a roughly 2 billions tax increase, as several observers competed although full detail is not yet available. Let’s suppose the bill (although not entitled to full fledged bill status) concerned only the reductions and deductions decrease and the rate cut on the lowest income tax thresholds. Finally, let’s suppose the net aggregated benefit is 5.5 billions, as supported by Grilli.
Well, that would be a smaller payment by tax payers, not a bigger income.
Basically, less money would leave those wallets, not more money get into.
Someone might point out that what matters is the overall balance, which under Grilli’s unrealistic hypothesises would be a bigger net income.
Mathematically, that is true.
On the other hand, by endorsing the implicit rationale in Grilli’s claims we will eventually endorse the principle upon which net incomes produced by tax payers belong to the State, entitled to decide not just which part of it should drained by fiscal bills but which part would be, gracefully, left to those who those incomes produced.
Fair enough there seems to be no limit to worse case; let’s avoid, at least, brain washing gets up to these levels.
Translation by Roberto Tremolada
Original Article by Matteo Corsini from L’Indipendenza