Zagreb - The opposition on Thursday criticised the draft 2022 budget revision, saying it shows that the government is using inflation to fill the state budget while giving citizens scraps, but the ruling HDZ said the government was rationally managing finances.
VAT on the most important foods has been slashed several times, which proves the government has feeling for those most in need, HDZ MP Grozdana Perić said to the opposition's claims that the government is filling the budget thanks to higher prices and taxes.
The draft revision raises budgetary revenue by HRK 758.2 million to 171.8 billion, while keeping expenditures at 184.7 billion. The revenue increase is primarily due to higher tax revenue, which is HRK 4.4 billion higher than the revenue envisaged by the 2022 budget revision in May.
Peđa Grbin of the Social Democratic Party said the budget was increasing by HRK 5 billion, yet that only one billion was being returned to citizens through aid measures.
The budget winner is the government and citizens are the loser, said Anka Mrak Taritaš of GLAS.
Someone is making a lot of money off citizens, said Vesna Vučemilović of the Croatian Sovereignists, adding that not all price rises are justified and that taxing extra profit is justified and necessary.
Davor Bernardić of the Social Democrats said the draft budget revision showed there was no vision of economic development. There are fewer and fewer of us, life is increasingly hard, economic growth is small and fragile, inflation will keep growing, and living standards are deteriorating, he added.
Marin Lerotić of the Istrian Democratic Party said that despite a higher tax revenue, the budget deficit decreased by only 5% due to an inability to deal with healthcare costs and absorb EU funds. The budget deficit of HRK 12 billion will be dealt with by borrowing, he added.
The opposition criticised the government also because of slow post-earthquake reconstruction and for failing to absorb HRK 5.3 billion from EU funds.
Nikola Grmoja of Bridge said the situation was untenable and asked citizens to consider how much the government and its corruption were costing them.
Katarina Peović of the Workers' Front said Croatia was not absorbing enough EU funds and that there was no projection of how to channel the higher VAT revenue into the green transition and social needs.
We will pay over HRK 1.5 billion for the arbitration agreement with MOL but spend only two billion on the green transition, she added.
Stipo Mlinarić of the Homeland Movement said war veterans' pensions above HRK 3,000 were cut by 10% in 2010 and asked the finance minister to redress that.
(€1 = HRK 7.5)