Parliament votes to scrap Fuel Tax Surcharge

petrolpump Doom-laden Secretary of State for Finance, Ricardo Mourinho Felix, warned today that the abolition of Portugal’s ISP fuel tax surcharge, “has a significant impact” and that “it will have to be compensated for in some way.”

On Thursday, parliament approved a proposal that should see an end to the fuel tax surcharge (ISP) after further analysis.

This vote does not mean the law had changed. The next step is for the Budget Committee to mull it over before it goes back to parliament for a full vote.

Ricardo Mourinho Felix is cautious, “We will have to realise the impact of what has been approved. I do not have the concrete values, but it is significant, and, being significant, it will have to be compensated in some way if it is implemented in the scale in which it was discussed.”

Mourinho Felix is irked that scrapping this tax will mean the State Budget will need recasting as income from the iniquitous tax will reduce and will “have to be compensated for in some way,” ignoring that other taxes are in surplus, mostly relating to the current property and tourism boom.

Felix claimed that the abolition of the ISP “affects the government’s de-carbonisation plans, its promotion of sustainable mobility and its plan to reduce greenhouse gases,” adding that the executive also will look at ending the ISP in this context.

“I think what we have to do is have a responsible discussion on the substance of what was approved. A draft bill has been passed and in the later detailed discussion, several questions must be asked, in particular the question of budgetary impacts.” The positives seem not to have crossed Felix’s mind – this possibly is why he works in State finance.

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