ACN
The PP considers it "very serious" that the regional Minister of Economy and Finance, José Carlos Mauricio, "is dedicated to playing dumb and saying one day that he accepts Zapatero's initiative for the Autonomous Communities to raise their Special Taxes and, the next day, declare the opposite. At stake is something as basic for our growth as the confidence of taxpayers and investors in our tax advantages," said the spokesman for the island's Popular Party.
Larry Álvarez ironized about Mauricio's "sudden change of criteria", who now says that he does not accept Zapatero's idea of raising taxes to compensate for the health deficit, and "welcomed him to the PP's theses, which conjugates the verb to lower, never to raise, when it comes to taxes. The PP does not take more resources and freedom from people so that they pay for the inefficiency of the Administration, but, on the contrary, the PP believes and practices, wherever it governs, a policy of fiscal moderation and rigor in public spending".
The 'populars', said their spokesman, "we are pleased to see the announcement that the Canary Islands will form a common front with the Balearic Islands, a community governed by the PP, against Zapatero's proposal, which," added Larry Álvarez, "only confirms our position of firmness in defense of the interests of citizens".
Another thing, pointed out the popular spokesman, "is that Mauricio's firmness is only apparent, because, in fact, he has taken advantage of his rhetorical rejection of the latest proposal launched this Thursday by ministers Solbes, Salgado and Sevilla, to reiterate that the Canary Islands Government intends to raise the Special Taxes on Alcohol, Tobacco and Registrations".
"The contradictions in a matter as sensitive as fiscal autonomy indicate the serious lack of transparency of the Adán Martín Government, confirm its weakness in the face of initiatives imposed by Zapatero and generate distrust among taxpayers and investors potentially interested in contributing to the growth of the Canary Islands," said Larry Álvarez.
The "new swerve" of the Canary Islands Government demonstrates, in the opinion of the populars, that Adán Martín and José Carlos Mauricio "rushed to accept Zapatero's initiative to raise taxes, without knowing it in detail beforehand. Now they need to distance themselves rhetorically, seeing how the unpopularity of the measures announced by Solbes, Sevilla and Salgado is growing, and discovering the scope of the autonomous rebellion against the plans of the socialist Government, even in Communities governed by the PSOE, as is the case of Galicia".
The 'populars' reiterate that the Autonomous Financing pact reached in 2001 by all the Autonomous Communities of the common regime is the "appropriate framework for the Canary Islands to obtain compensation for the health deficit, to which it is entitled".
The current Pact provides for "corrective mechanisms for the health deficit caused by the increase in population. What the socialist Government has to do is apply these current mechanisms and compensate the Communities that, like the Canary Islands, have seen their population increase with the arrival of new residents and the access of new users to the public health system. The response that the Canarians expect from their regional Government is not a docile acceptance of everything that the PSOE Government intends to impose, but firmness in the demand for the compensations provided for by the current system of autonomous financing".
