Belgium can take the first steps towards a tax reform, Prime Minister Alexander De Croo said on Sunday at the “Zevende dag” programme on VRT, cautioning it must not burden the budget.
In an interview with Het Nieuwsblad, Open Vld chairman Egbert Lachaert, a party colleague of Prime Minister De Croo, said that “the big reform with which you will make people happy – and with which (the government) takes less taxes – is for later.”
Following the interview, Lachaert was more specific on where he stands on the tax reform.
“Onze ambitie is groter dan een verschuiving van belastingen. Op termijn moet de belasting dalen voor wie werkt, spaart en onderneemt. Dat kan enkel met een efficiëntere overheid. Vlaams, federaal en lokaal, zodat mensen minder belastingen moeten betalen.” #vtmnieuws pic.twitter.com/JxonBbe1Q0
— Egbert Lachaert (@egbertlachaert) February 12, 2023
Translation: “Our ambition is bigger than a shift in taxes. In the long term, the tax should fall for those who work, save and do business. This is only possible with a more efficient government. Flemish, federal and local, so that people can pay less taxes.”
Prime Minister Alexander De Croo
Prime Minister Alexander De Croo, meanwhile, said that his government could take the first steps. However, these must not put a strain on the budget. “We have to continue to work in a very disciplined way to ensure that the path to a sound budget is maintained,” the Prime Minister said, clarifying the he was “ideologically in favour” of reducing the tax burden, but current budgetary constraints do not allow for it.
He added that these initial measures must ensure that “the people who make this country work will benefit and not suffer.”
