AWS government is likely to abandon income tax reforms for high earners

Now that Freedom Union (UW) has left the coalition government, Solidarity Election Action (AWS) is unlikely to go ahead with the tax reform approved by the cabinet two weeks ago. AWS politicians are coming up with many reasons not to introduce the reform which would lower personal income tax rates, particularly for top-earners. AWS spokesman Piotr Zak said the government may be unable to afford the reform, because former Finance Minister Leszek Balcerowicz made an inaccurate inflation-forecast and so billions will have to paid as compensation to pensioners. Monetary Policy Council (RPP) member and AWS economic expert Boguslaw Grabowski said Poland cannot afford a reform which would lower taxes mainly for high-earners. The new Finance Minister Jaroslaw Bauc (AWS) said it does not really matter if the reform is introduced this year or the next. (Gazeta Wyborcza, page 23) T.J.