Savings proposals: FDP praises expert report, Greens criticize
Published: Thursday, Sep 5th 2024, 15:12
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The FDP Switzerland welcomes the expert report on the analysis of federal finances presented on Thursday. The report confirms "many central demands of our party", writes the FDP in a press release.
For example, they point out that there are numerous subsidies that could easily be abolished. The authors also stated that the division of tasks between the federal government and the cantons should be reorganized.
The FDP also welcomes "the thrust of the Gaillard Group's main variant" for improving federal finances: "Yes to efficiency, yes to the army, no to new taxes".
Ultimately, the report shows that savings are possible if the federal government becomes more efficient and "nonsensical subsidies" are eliminated. Switzerland must seize this opportunity. Then the money would be "easily sufficient for a strong army" - without new taxes.
A "courtesy report" for the Greens
The Greens, on the other hand, spoke of a "pandering report" on Thursday. Instead of using such a report to "legitimize a massive cutback programme", it would be better for the middle classes to "correct their wrong financial policy decisions".
The "haphazard and excessive increase in the army budget" and "the lack of willingness to reform the outdated debt brake" had brought the federal budget out of control. The preferential treatment of the cantons in the OECD tax reform is now also proving to be a mistake on the part of the bourgeoisie and the Federal Council's financial policy.
These decisions must now be reversed. The fact that a reform of the debt brake is not being considered and that measures on the revenue side are not being seriously considered does not indicate that FDP Finance Minister Karin Keller-Sutter and the group of experts are interested in an open discussion on the future of federal finances.
GLP says "Yes, but"
For the GLP, the expert group's savings proposals are "going in the right direction". It is good that the group is "making a broad range of savings proposals", the party writes in a press release. It is right to focus on reducing expenditure.
However, the GLP is also calling for a review of whether the debt brake should be made more flexible.
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