THE CURRENT government has been the first to pursue the social character of the economy, a strong state and solidarity, Prime Minister Robert Fico said during an evaluation on March 17 of his own government’s 2006-2010 term, the SITA newswire reported.
Fico said that the government had never taken any measures to weaken the business environment or negatively affect economic growth, and that the country’s adoption of the euro currency, its membership of the Schengen area and its competitive workforce means it is becoming one of the most attractive countries for foreign investors. He emphasised that the government had not increased taxes and added that any new government taking office after the June parliamentary elections must continue this trend.
The original programme statement of the government stipulated as one of its goals the creation of conditions to allow economic growth exceeding 5 percent of GDP every year. In the area of direct taxes, the government said it considered it necessary to increase the rate of ‘solidarity’ in the tax system, with a gradual rise in the non-taxable part of the tax base and potential adjustment of the amount of the tax bonus. The government also promised to propose higher taxation for natural persons with above-average income, which it achieved by introducing the so-called millionaire tax. Fico rejected any criticism that insufficient EU funds had been drawn. He also declared that his government had done more than any other for policemen and firefighters. He said minority policies in Slovakia meet high European standards, SITA wrote. He called the greatest affair of the current election period “the money laundering by one of the opposition parties”. He also emphasised what he said was his government’s successful handling of the consequences of the economic crisis.
