The former deputy prime minister was harsh on CPK. “Unnecessary”
Instead of wasting public money on an unnecessary Central Communication Port, it is better to spend it on the development of transport infrastructure and the green energy transformation – says Prof. in an interview with Business Insider Polska. Grzegorz Kołodko, former deputy prime minister, minister of finance.
Prof. Grzegorz Kołodko, former deputy prime minister and minister of finance (in 1994-1997, and later 2002-2003) gave an interview to Business Insider Polska. He was asked, among others: about what advice he would give to those currently in power. Kolodko points out, among others: to “plowing through” the tax system, which, in his opinion, is “deformed and does not sufficiently support social cohesion or capital formation.”
– In total, revenues from taxes and other fiscal charges – relatively, in relation to national income – should not be higher, but expenditure financed from the public purse should be more pro-development. There are to be fewer tax reliefs that do not serve the cause of competitiveness and development, and the scale of tax progression must be greater – says the former head of the Ministry of Finance.
Kolodko: CPK is unnecessary
According to the deputy prime minister in left-wing governments, the government should shift some of its spending away from military, including: for investments in human capital. Kolodko also criticizes the CPK project.
– The government should – although this is hardly expected from the current government – free itself from the Cold War fever and shift a significant part of spending from military to investments in human capital and improvement of infrastructure serving both the productivity of entrepreneurs and the consumption of the population. Public money is wasted on arms imports, which are often wrong, also according to military experts, instead of importing modern technologies from abroad, which we do not have enough in many sectors – says Kolodko.
– Instead of wasting public money on an unnecessary Central Communication Port, it is better to spend it on the development of transport infrastructure and the green energy transformation – he adds.
According to the former Minister of Finance, we should return to the issue of gradually increasing the retirement age, and also discuss Poland's entry into the euro zone, emphasizing that the most important thing is “that over time this should happen at the right conversion rate, i.e. one that will guarantee the international competitiveness of our economy because we should pursue an export-led growth strategy.
