Haddad says he will present the economy’s flight plan to Lula in his first dispatch

Minister Fernando Haddad (Finance) said this Tuesday (3) that, in his first dispatch, he will present to President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) a flight plan with short, medium and long-term actions for the economic agenda of the new management.

The head of the folder also minimized the reactions of the financial market after his inauguration speech on Monday (2). According to Haddad, the unfavorable movement of Brazilian assets, with the dollar rising and the stock market falling, shows that economic agents are “falling in the picture” about the legacy left by the Jair Bolsonaro (PL) government.

Economists and investors heard by the Sheethowever, attribute yesterday’s movements to Lula government measures that indicate a risk of greater intervention in the economy, such as the withdrawal of state-owned companies from the privatization plan, changes in relation to the ANA (agency linked to the sanitation framework) and statements about changes in the Petrobras pricing policy.

“In my first dispatch, I will present a short, medium and long term flight plan to President Lula. I will present a huge set of actions for him, of decisions that he will have to take, one by one”, said Haddad in an interview with the Brasil 247 website.

“Lula is very detailed, he likes to know the impact of each one of them, evidently he will agree with part, disagree with another, want to analyze many others more calmly. This is how he works and I am used to doing it. Based on in the decision he makes, we will have to reestimate the indicators [econômicos]”, he added.

According to Haddad, the presentation should take place in the coming days, when Lula is available on his agenda. The day after taking office, the president received several foreign authorities in bilateral meetings, such as the presidents of Portugal (Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa) and Argentina (Alberto Fernández).

Haddad took over the Ministry of Finance this Monday with a message of responsibility for public accounts, combating inflation and prioritizing social issues. However, he did not outline a flight plan, failing to detail how he intends to put his promises into practice.

In his first speech, the new minister said that he is not in the position ‘for adventures’ in a message for the financial market, which remains suspicious.

Upon taking office, Haddad also reaffirmed his commitment to submit a proposal for a new fiscal framework to the National Congress in the first half of the year, replacing the spending ceiling –classified as “stupidity” by President Lula in one of his inaugural speeches on Sunday ( 1st).

This Tuesday, the Minister of Finance said that the government intends to start discussions on the new fiscal rule and on the tax reform as of April. Haddad argues that it is necessary to await the inauguration of the new parliamentarians, in February, and the formation of benches and thematic commissions in the Chamber of Deputies and in the Senate.

The two themes “can and should” go hand in hand, according to the head of the economic portfolio. In the case of tax reform, the government will first deal with the issue of indirect taxes, which affect consumption, and then act on taxes that affect income.

“We intend to face, as of April, the tax reform of indirect taxes, which affect consumption. That’s why we talk about IVA (Value Added Tax) to simplify all this, to make paying taxes less expensive”, he said. .

“Next, we will face the debate on direct taxes, income tax on dividends, deductions will be discussed, what is fair, what is not fair, how do you relieve low-income, middle-income workers, like you improves the composition of the tax basket in Brazil”, he continued.

As shown to Sheet, the discussion regarding taxes on consumption is seen as more mature after Congress has addressed two PECs that simplify taxation in the country. 45, authored by Deputy Baleia Rossi (MDB-SP), provides for the replacement of five taxes (IPI, PIS, Cofins, the state ICMS and the municipal ISS) by the idea of ​​the tax on goods and services (IBS).

110, from the Senate, transforms nine taxes (IPI, IOF, PIS, Pasep, Cofins, Cide-Fuels, Salary-Education, ICMS and ISS) into an IBS.