ZAGREB, Nov 3(Hina) - The Government budget for 1999 will +realistically be less than this year's said a government +representative at Tuesday's meeting of the Government-Social +Council.+ The Council which consists of government
representatives, +employers and the unions discussed the principles and directions to +be used while formulating the state budget in keeping with +recommendations recently presented by the Croatian Association of +Employers (HUP).+ A draft budget will be sent to the Croatian National Sabor no later +than November 15 and employers and unions will be forwarded a copy +as soon as the Government adopts it said a Finance Ministry +representative, Sanja Madarevic.+ The budget will nominally be increased by 5 per cent bringing it to +the re-balanced 1998 budget level however, this increase will be +below the nominal growth rate of the Gross Domestic Product for next +year. + The Government's main ob
ZAGREB, Nov 3(Hina) - The Government budget for 1999 will
realistically be less than this year's said a government
representative at Tuesday's meeting of the Government-Social
Council.
The Council which consists of government representatives,
employers and the unions discussed the principles and directions to
be used while formulating the state budget in keeping with
recommendations recently presented by the Croatian Association of
Employers (HUP).
A draft budget will be sent to the Croatian National Sabor no later
than November 15 and employers and unions will be forwarded a copy
as soon as the Government adopts it said a Finance Ministry
representative, Sanja Madarevic.
The budget will nominally be increased by 5 per cent bringing it to
the re-balanced 1998 budget level however, this increase will be
below the nominal growth rate of the Gross Domestic Product for next
year.
The Government's main objective is to decrease the Government's
role in the GDP so that by the end if 1999 the budget would end with a
surplus of US$82 million.
Salaries to be covered from the state budget calculated to November
this year will require an increase of US$328 million said
Madarevic.
The decrease in reality will be influenced by the unfavourable
conditions on the international capital market which has disabled
new foreign loans, she said.
Deputy Labour and Social Welfare Minister Vera Babic stated that
the Government would make efforts to increase minimum taxable
levels so that subsidies for public expenditure could be covered by
taxes rather than salary contributions.
Employer and union representatives expressed their
dissatisfaction of a State which was too costly and asked for tax
alleviation and a decrease in the level of VAT.
Croatian Association of Unions President Niko Gunjina even
suggested bilateral cooperation between employers and the unions
in an effort to compel the Government to change its economic and
social politics.
Only the president of Alliance of Croatian Public Service Unions
Vilim Ribic opposed a decrease in the level of VAT. Ribic said that
VAT was a sure income for the budget which finances public
services.
The level of VAT is not the problem but rather tax alleviations on
the whole need to be decreased he said.
Participants at the talks evaluated that the principles and
directives for the following budget were on the main well designed
however, the Finance Ministry's representative commented that HUP
had virtually rewritten the principles of the Government's fiscal
politics intended for the 1998 - 2000 period which the Government
had adopted last year.
(Hina) sp