Reduced tax based on the bluff – Eskilstuna Courier

Editorial

PRO’s lobbyists receive dividends. S-MP-government delivers. The tax for all pensioners decreased even though the money is needed elsewhere.

“The government borrows to tax cuts.” How many times have the phrase repeated by the Social Democrats as the Alliance reigned? But now the S-MP-government alike – lower taxes for pensioners, while the state budget deficit.

The rhetorical nature Dangan leads in fact lost. It gives the impression that tax cuts should only be considered when there is a budget surplus. Such an approach goes against most of the knowledge of economic policy and against the doctrine that even Social Democrats generally endorsed.

Trend Politics is all about gas in recession and slow down the boom. The former means then that State either increase their spending or lowering some taxes when the economy is slowing down, unemployment is rising and government deficits.

Lower income primarily during the Alliance government’s first term, which coincided with the financial crisis, came to function so. The Swedish demand held up, except that it was more profitable to work and make wage career.

Furthermore, even borrowed the Social Democrats to tax cuts when they sat in opposition. Their budgetmotioner contained tax cuts while the budget of the motions remained at the same level as the government, therefore, often showed a deficit.

In office becomes hypocrisy even more evident. Finance Minister Magdalena Andersson (S) may say that any reform financed “dollar for dollar” – incidentally, a term she has taken from Anders Borg – but will not be assumed that the government is forced to borrow to get the debit and credit to make ends meet.

Although the government’s choice of taxes is problematic. The reduced tax for pensioners has very little to do with what the government says is its priority – jobs policy. Pension is not remuneration for work done here and now. Nor is this tax reduction especially accurate if the purpose is to improve the economic conditions for retirees with the minimum margins. The two billion tax cut cost had then made more useful if they had been, for example, increased housing allowances for pensioners with low pension, instead of being spread out over retiree community.

No, this tax cut is about something else , namely to deliver in accordance with the message that pensioners’ organizations have managed to sell to the Social Democrats. Who says seniors now pay higher taxes than wage earners and the earned income tax credit has created this injustice. In its most extreme form, it is said that Sweden is the only country in the world that has such a distinction in taxation.

Those who study the matter further see that the statement is false. In international comparisons retiree organization PRO has included social security contributions into the treasure of other countries’ workers, but not in the Swedish. If the social security contributions, however taken into account when looking at how much tax is paid in Swedish wages, it is clear that pensions are taxed at a lower rate than labor income (see Saturday chronicle “The persistent bluff of ‘retiree tax’ ’140,830).

But the picture of tax injustice against the Swedish pensioners was once and remained. And now conducting S MP Government that policy. It only congratulate PRO’s lobbyists to a scam gone home.