BRATISLAVA, November 30, (WEBNOVINY) — A petition calling for the rescue of Slovak agriculture was handed to Speaker of Parliament Richard Sulik (SaS) by representatives of a crisis team on Tuesday. The petition was signed by more than 115,000 people. At the same, time around two hundred farmers gathered in front of the building of the parliament who demanded the parliamentary deputies to accept their demands. As the head of the Slovak Agricultural and Food Chamber Milan Semancik said, farmers realize the importance of consolidation of public finances; however, they reject proposals that could be liquidating for the farming sector.
Sulik accepted the petition, thanked the farmers and left. As he explained for journalists, he had already met with SPPK representatives two days ago and he knows their case. At the same time, he confirmed that the deputy faction of SaS will not vote for increasing VAT in the extent proposed by farmers.
Farmers say that austerity measures affect the agro-food sector much harsher than other sectors of the economy. SPPK mostly disapproves of the proposal to abolish tax relief on the so-called red diesel used in farm machines, higher excise tax on beer, as well as cancellation of the law on inappropriate conditions between suppliers and retail chains. The petition also demands to adopt legislative instruments to fend off an excessive increase of taxes on land and buildings. It also demands that 20-percent national supplement payments be provided in addition to direct payments from the EU and calls for a reasonable hike in the volume of funds to be used for state assistance in the public administration budget for 2011. Regarding the revision to the Value Added Tax Act, the SPPK advocates support of direct sale of farm produce by applying a lower tax rate on it, and also advocating a lower tax burden for selected basic foodstuffs.
SITA