Increasing taxes on SMEs is not compatible with the reactivation of the economy

August 16, 2021

“Publimetro” news commented on the increasing taxes on SMEs.

Position against the tax reform to increase taxes on SMEs

Senator Gustavo Petro expressed his opposition to this section in the new Tax Reform presented by the Government of President Duque. Senator Gustavo Petro says that “increasing taxes to SMEs goes against the reactivation”.

Senator Gustavo Petro expressed his disagreement in an interview with Caracol Radio concerning taxes for small and medium companies. He said this in his answer to Gustavo Bolivar when he asked him how he did in the Andi congress. According to Petro, “the Colombian economy is based on oil, coal, and cocaine” and must evolve to a productive economy leaving behind extractivism.

Then, later in his response, the senator said he was against increasing taxes on SMEs. Adding, “we are talking about issues such as not imposing high taxes on small and medium enterprises in Colombia. That is what Duque is proposing in the current Tax Reform. They go against this. Increasing taxes on small and medium enterprises goes against a serious economic reactivation program”.

Likewise, “we are talking about a set of employment programs guaranteed by the state, i.e., the possibility that hundreds of thousands of people, in two groups, young people and women could be paid and employed by the state for tasks and functions the market cannot do. For example, reforestation and care of children throughout the country. As the preventive health programs that today, unfortunately by their absence, have left the country in the hands of the virus.

Source: Publimetro 13/08/21