France has no "
room for maneuver
" to lower taxes without compensation, warned Monday the First President of the Court of Auditors Pierre Moscovici, a few days before the presentation by the government of its draft budget for 2023. "
I think that we are not far from a threshold, a level where the consent to tax is in doubt
", affirmed before the Association of economic and financial journalists (Ajef) the former minister des Finances, who had theorized the "
fiscal fed
up" of the French when he was at Bercy.
In this context, with the rise in interest rates on the country's debt, "
we have no room for maneuver for dry tax cuts
", he insisted.
“
Fiscal stability is desirable
”.
The government has announced that it intends to include in the draft 2023 budget the abolition of the Contribution on the added value of companies (CVAE), a production tax which generates 7 to 8 billion euros in tax revenue annually.
During the presidential campaign, the candidate Emmanuel Macron had also mentioned a reduction in inheritance tax, the timetable for which is not yet known.
"
If we want to lower taxes, I'm not against it
," argued Pierre Moscovici on Monday.
But "
we must, in due proportion, either increase others or limit public spending
", he added.
"
If there are tax cuts, they must be compensated
" because "
if we don't compensate for them, it's more deficit, therefore more debt, these are deferred taxes
", detailed the boss of the Court of Auditors.
There is "
no taboo
" on superprofits
Bercy has commissioned deputies to work by the end of September on ways to reduce public spending in the short and long terms, a “
good thing
” according to Pierre Moscovici.
“
We are rediscovering in this country that Parliament is the place where the budget is drawn up (…) it had been forgotten for a long time.
There is a somewhat original method which is proposed by the government, which is to anticipate the discussion, we will see what happens
,” he said.
Asked about the advisability of introducing an exceptional tax on the profits of certain companies which would benefit from inflation linked to the war in Ukraine, Pierre Moscovici judged that the debate was “
not taboo
”.
"
There are a number of countries that have taken action on this: Germany, the British Conservatives... There is a European climate, other countries are doing it, debate cannot be taboo in us
”.
“
Afterwards, the question is to tax who?
How?
It's very complicated
," he said.
Pierre Moscovici was speaking the day after Germany's commitment to support a "
compulsory contribution
» Energy companies, the terms of which would be set at European level and would not be subject to taxation.
"
The right way to do it is not necessarily purely fiscal
," added the former European Commissioner (2014-2019).
“
On corporate taxation, the more global, European the action, the better
”.