Albrecht
Glaser
Corona
Cyclical Package
German
Bundestag, June 19, 2020, Plenarprotokoll 19/167, pp. 20876-20877
[Albrecht
Glaser is an Alternative für Deutschland Bundestag member from the western German
state of Hessen. He is a member
of the Bundestag finance committee and here responds to a government tax proposal
concerning the Corona crisis.]
Herr
President. Right honorable ladies and gentlemen.
Following
an initial tax law on May 28, by which the food tax in the restaurant trade was
fixed for one year at a moderated assessment, we today have here a second law
which, as we have heard, shall give a large tax incentive for “Cyclical and
Crisis Management”, as it is called.
Although
that notice makes clear that tax reduction is the silver bullet for securing
liquidity and regenerating profitability, there are few measures for that in
the law, and almost all have not a relief but only a delay of payments effect.
No abolition of the solidarity surtax, no reduction of tax on profits and, be
it only for a time limited to the recovery of the economy, a merely minimal
correction in the business tax. The loss carry-back, which was already called
for in an AfD motion in April, to be revised to two years; a diminishing
depreciation allowance [AfA] during
this and next year for non-fixed assets; and a temporary extension of the term
of re-investment in the area of §6b EStG [income tax law] – these are the
narrow concessions to business. These measures diminish not at all the income
of the state; they merely defer it to later years.
The
Big Wumms will be a sales tax reduction of 2 or 3 percent, based on a moderated
rate of assessment, which is guaranteed only for the second half of 2020. It
shall ostensibly relieve the consumers by around 20 billion euros, and almost
surely burden business with billions in adaptation costs. Whether these
short-term moderations of the sales tax are to be passed on to the consumers,
which is questionable, they help not at all the businessmen, since in the short-term
we have not a demand by a supply problem. And the “Kindergeld”, allotted already to those of middle income on account
of the child allowance, is more a populist measure.
The
tax alterations altogether lead to a loss of income of 37 billion euros for the
Federal government. On account of foreseeable transfers from the Federal
government to the states, communities, social security recipients and
investments, which are to be regulated by a supplementary law, the Federal
budget for 2020 will be financed by a net indebtedness of 286 billion euros.
Together with the new indebtedness of the states and communities of a sum of
120 billion euros and the 200 billion euros borrowed by the Federal government
for the capital measures of the KfW, the national debt will increase to 2.66
trillion euros and thereby again grow to a share of over 80 percent of the
gross domestic product. That is the situation which we had during the 2009
financial crisis. Return to Go!
Against
this background, the Federal government conducts a continental rescue with a
touch of world rescue. For that, 750 billion euros in loans will be taken up,
although this is forbidden by Article 311 of the AEUV. 500 billion euros of
these loans will be bestowed on European countries which are particularly deep
in debt and 250 billion euros will be similarly given away. It may be pondered whether
the EZB, which also finances other international organizations, in any case
receives these first-time issues of the EU into its own portfolio. It thereby
finances itself. The consequent burden for Germany, combined with the increased
assessment for financing this operation, is not yet foreseeable; just as little
as the liability risks. That, right honorable ladies and gentlemen, must indeed
be the “Great Transformation” which is constantly being spoken of.
Hearty
thanks.
[Translated by Todd Martin]
