the chief undecided on the taxation of superprofits | EUROtoday

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LThis query agitates the political world. The alarming figures for the general public deficit, revealed Tuesday by INSEE, instantly woke France up. Now everyone seems to be questioning: find out how to scale back the deficit? And a query is turning into increasingly more urgent: ought to we tax company superprofits?

Behind this obscure time period, supporters of their taxation designate the distinctive income made by firms as a part of a windfall impact, as when TotalEnergies recorded an distinctive outcome as a result of surge in vitality costs. In December 2022, the chief had already launched a tax on the distinctive outcomes of vitality firms.

Problem: this tax solely introduced in 600 million euros, whereas the chief was relying on a return of three billion. In different phrases, “a hazelnut” out of the 145 billion in income recorded in 2023 by CAC 40 firms, as highlighted by TF1 journalist François Lenglet, who, on Wednesday night, questioned the Prime Minister on the topic.

Send reassuring indicators

Within the bulk, the measure has its supporters. Yaël Braun-Pivet, the president of the National Assembly, is in favor. “I am in favor of looking when there are superdividends, superprofits, massive share buybacks by companies, to think about whether there is not there, in an exceptional way, a capacity that we “We may have to increase state revenue,” she defended on Friday March 22 on France Bleu Lorraine. François Bayrou, the president of MoDem, ally of the bulk within the chamber, believes that this avenue have to be “explored”.

But, on the high of the state, opinions differ. Bruno Le Maire admitted Tuesday on RTL that it will most likely be essential to “expand” the contribution of vitality firms in order that it brings in additional. But, for the quantity two within the authorities, it stops there. “There will be no more than that,” he determined, Friday March 22 on BFMTV, in response to Yaël Braun-Pivet’s declaration. For his half, the Prime Minister appears extra open. “I have no dogma on this subject,” he repeated twice on the TF1 set on Wednesday night. Nuance issues.

This debate on a measure initially defended by the left comes a couple of weeks earlier than the European elections, which is able to happen on June 9. Faced with a deficit which reaches 5.5% of GDP, the chief seeks to reassure on the debt. With, in sight, the extremely anticipated verdicts of the ranking businesses, anticipated in April and May. A deterioration in France's ranking might weigh on the rating of Valérie Hayer, head of the Renaissance checklist, already behind by a number of factors within the polls by Jordan Bardella (National Rally).

A European debate

Questioned on this topic by AFP, a supply on the Ministry of the Economy kicked in, indicating that the taxation of companies and the wealthiest households “must be done at the international level”. In September 2022, the European Commission approved member states to tax the superprofits of vitality firms who had benefited from hovering vitality prices.

Most European nations adopted swimsuit, like France. But some have gone additional. In Italy, the far-right authorities final summer season imposed a 40% tax on banks' “excess profits” generated by rising rates of interest. This levy on “unfair bank margins” was for use to finance “support measures for households and businesses”, Giorgia Meloni then justified. But this measure precipitated the collapse of financial institution securities on the inventory market, forcing the Italian authorities to backpedal by capping the contribution at 0.1% of belongings.


https://www.lepoint.fr/economie/deficit-public-l-executif-indecis-sur-la-taxation-des-superprofits-29-03-2024-2556243_28.php