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Employers to Be Engaged in Drafting Rules for Surplus Emissions Tax
Monday 20 December 2010 Zoom in | Print page
Bratislava, December 20 (TASR) - Representatives of employers in Slovakia will take part in the process of drafting rules designed to specify which companies will be affected by an 80-percent tax on surplus emission quotas, according to an agreement than was reached at a tripartite session on Monday.
The law was approved in Parliament on December 1, but President Ivan Gasparovic refused to sign it on Friday, December 17. As a result, Parliamentary Chairman Richard Sulik later on the same day decided to summon the House to meet on Tuesday, December 21. "I'm very unhappy about this, but I have to summon MPs to meet once more before Christmas," said Sulik, adding that he has done so because the Coalition wants the law to come into effect as was originally proposed - that is, as of January 2011.
"In the event of Parliament backing the law on Tuesday, employers will be engaged in the process of drawing up pertinent rules that should ensure that the tax will be imposed on speculation and not on companies' appropriate behaviour and investments," said head of the Republican Union of Employers (RUZ) Marian Jusko.
Although such a distinction isn't 100-percent possible, it will be possible in many cases, said Jusko, noting that this will largely depend on the commitment of the ministries concerned.
The initiative was drafted by Finance Minister Ivan Miklos (SDKU-DS), who defended it by saying that Slovak companies were set overly generous emission limits by the previous government, earning them €660 million between 2008-12. According to Miklos, these limits were disadvantageous for the state, so the ministry has decided to levy a tax on the surplus amounts. The measure is aimed at raising €150 million for state coffers.
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