PM Vows to Push InheritanceTax

Country Needs More Revenue to Boost Welfare, says Abhisit
 
Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said yesterday he was determined to get the land- and inheritance-tax legislation passed within the term of his administration.

Well-known political observers yesterday welcomed the ambitious tax plan, but they expressed concern about possible opposition from those who would stand to lose.

Abhisit said he would try to convince those who would be affected, mostly people with large fortunes and lots of land, including some politicians from within the ruling Democrat Party.

The government, he insisted, was not pushing it for its own benefit but to bring about social justice.

Finance Minister Korn Chatikavanij is overseeing the matter, Abhisit said yesterday, adding that there were many details that needed to be to closely looked at.

Land tax will likely be exempted for those having housing problems while people with lots of idle land will be taxed progressively.

Abhisit said that in other countries inheritance tax had always been adjusted and improved upon. The matter will take some time, however, he said.

When asked how he would deal with rich people opposed to it, Abhisit said he would "explain" to them and convince them of the need.

Asked if the middle class and

the elite, who supported the party, would oppose it, the premier promised to look at the matter from all angles.

The PM stressed that the government's intention to offer better social welfare meant tax revenue from income tax alone would not be enough to cover it.

Former agriculture minister Somsak Prissanananthakul said he was fully supportive of the move and added that he had always been trying to introduce such laws.

Somsak added, however, that

agricultural land should not be

taxed further while the industrial and property sectors should be taxed more.

If this government is serious, then it should go ahead and work towards equality, he said.

Suriyasai Katasila, coordinator of the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD), yesterday lauded the initiative as a first step towards land reform and solving the poverty issue.

The PAD leader said he believed the majority of the people backed the move and added that statistics showed that 90 per cent of the Thai population held less than one rai of land per head while the other 10 per cent had more than 100 rai each on average.

Suriyasai said the government might face opposition from capitalists but as long as the majority of the population supported the move the government would not be destabilised.

Meanwhile, Seri Suwanphanond, former senator and drafter of the 1997 constitution, yesterday said the idea was good because it was unjust for any individual to hold too much land.

He added that the government must beware of the rich, who were mostly politically influential, some even financiers of political parties or launderers of ill-gotten money by purchasing land.

The government must be clear about the matter, he said, adding that it would have a wide impact and consensus was needed.

Seri warned of opposition within the ruling party but added that the state could earn more revenue if the move succeeded.

Banjerd Singkaneti, a lecturer at Thammasat University's Faculty of Law, yesterday also supported the move to tax land holdings.

He said it was a good measure, already adopted by many European countries, aimed at preventing land-hoarding for price speculation. However, he also warned that there were possible downsides and the government should weigh the pros and cons before making a decision.

Source - The Nation