Leftists suspect election tactics: Politicians delay tax cuts before elections

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You might think that elections fuel political debates. But certain topics are kept quiet so as not to alienate voters. Leftists criticize that this just happened in the Economic Commission of the Council of States. And federal councilor Karin Keller-Sutter (59) can be happy.

What is meant is the tonnage tax. It is intended to allow shipping companies to tax their ships based on their carrying capacity, rather than on profit, as is customary. The purpose of the special scheme: Less taxes for shipping companies. The Federal Council voted in favor of this in May 2022. He argued that the tonnage tax was a means to make Switzerland more attractive as a business location.

21 EU countries have already introduced such a regulation. But the financial consequences for Switzerland cannot be predicted precisely because there is a lack of statistical data. However, experts estimate that the tax burden for shipping companies could drop to six to seven percent. This means that shipping companies have to pay less than half to the tax authorities. Because they actually have to pay 15 percent, as required by the OECD minimum tax, which was approved by the people this summer.

Nevertheless, the Swiss government assumes that any revenue shortfalls will be small, thanks to “expected positive effects”. This means: The Federal Council hopes that low taxes will attract new businesses, which will in turn stimulate the economy.

Commission of the Council of States pulls the handbrake

At the end of 2022, the National Council also approved the tonnage tax. A victory for the bourgeois parties, which the SP, the Greens and the GLP oppose. The matter then comes to the Council of States. But the Stöckli is now putting on the brakes. Instead of tackling the tonnage tax, the responsible economic committee postponed the deal on Monday, as Blick knows.

Civilian politicians have cited further clarifications on the financial implications and constitutionality as reasons. Equal tax treatment is a constitutional principle. And the tonnage tax would come around that.

Left-wing politicians suspect that the postponement is calculated. “The Council of States always demands new clarification if it does not want to interfere in something,” says one person involved. Switzerland will vote next Sunday – and the federal government will have to save money. Both are bad conditions for a yes to tax cuts for billion-dollar companies.

The largest shipping company in the world is located in Switzerland

To illustrate: The largest shipping company in the world is called Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) and is based in Switzerland. It owns more than 730 ships, has 150,000 employees and is estimated to have made a profit of 30 billion francs by 2022. According to the Swiss Trading and Shipping Association, 22 percent of all ships on the world’s oceans are operated from Switzerland. This shows that a lot of money is involved in the tonnage tax.

And the Federal Council supports the tax cut, even though it faces a billion-dollar deficit. Red figures are also programmed for the coming years. Finance Minister Keller-Sutter must therefore save money. One example: the National Council wants more money for childcare for families. The first year could start with 800 million francs. But the Federal Council wants to spend a maximum of half.

Greens threaten referendum

Allowing shipping companies to pay less taxes while cutting spending on daycare centers would be difficult for Keller-Sutter to justify. It is said that the federal councilor fears a war on two fronts, which is why she does not really want the tonnage tax. In any case, it is not her business, but a legacy of her predecessor and former federal councilor Ueli Maurer (72).

It suits Keller-Sutter well that the Council of States committee has now postponed the matter until the next legislature. This gives her time to convince Stöckli to agree to the tax reduction. If she fails to do so, she will face a referendum battle. Because Green Party chairman Balthasar Glättli (51) has already threatened with the referendum.

Source:Blick