Slovakia's Finance Minister Ladislav Kamenický has stated that laws related to fiscal consolidation should ideally be presented at the next government meeting. This follows from a party meeting on Monday, where Kamenický emphasized the importance of reaching an agreement this week, as the national budget must be submitted by October 15. Prime Minister Robert Fico added that one way to generate funds could be by removing the practice of observing state holidays as non-working days. He said that Slovakia has one of the highest numbers of state holidays in the European Union, and turning these holidays into working days could help raise necessary funds.
Fico also mentioned other options being discussed, such as reducing VAT on food, which would need to be offset by other measures, including a potential tax on financial transactions for legal entities. However, according to him any consolidation measures should not compromise the current social standards. The government aims to save between €1.5 and €2.6 billion.
Source: TASR, STVR
