Source: O Popular - GO, 27/02/2008

Brasília - The opposition yesterday demanded that the government suspend the sending of provisional measures (MPs) to the National Congress in the name of proceeding with the tax reform. According to the opposition, it is impossible to pay attention to the reform proposal while MPs lock the voting guidelines in the House and Senate. Government officials have avoided formalizing a position, but have promised that the number of measures will be reduced.

“The opposition's appeal is legitimate. But the tendency is for there to be a reduction in the number of provisional measures sent to Congress because what there were were MPs related to the release of budget credits ”, stated the leader of the Senate government, Romero Jucá (PMDB-RR).

"We want this to end several provisional measures," said PSDB leader in the Senate, Arthur Virgílio Netto (AM). Under the current rite, once approved by the Chamber, the MP goes to the Senate, where it occupies the first items on the voting agenda, and may even lock up the proceedings in the plenary.

Without detailing how the government intends to respond to the opposition's appeal, Minister José Múcio Monteiro (Institutional Relations) signaled that there will be cooperation from the Planalto Palace. “There was a request for goodwill from parliamentarians. The government's willingness is to give provisional measures a different discipline, ”said the minister.

Yesterday a special commission was set up to analyze and forward proposals to speed up the voting of provisional measures in the Chamber. The idea is to approve a Constitutional Amendment Proposal (PEC) establishing changes in the processing of MPs.

The subject occupied part of the meeting led by ministers Guido Mantega (Finance) and José Múcio Monteiro (Institutional Relations) with representatives from DEM, PSDB, PPS and PSOL. For about three hours, ministers and parliamentarians discussed the proposed tax reform that will be sent by the government to Congress tomorrow.

For parliamentarians, it is essential that the details of the text are passed on to the parties. Deputies and senators who attended the meeting complained about the lack of information and values, in addition to the fact that a written text was not distributed to each of them.

Tax Burden

The Minister of Finance assured the presidents and leaders of the opposition parties that the proposal will have a device that will prevent the changes from causing an increase in the tax burden. "They said that the text of the proposal will have a mechanism that will prevent the load from rising," said PSDB leader in the Chamber, deputy José Aníbal (SP), after the meeting. According to Aníbal, Minister Mantega did not explain how this limitation will be made.

At the meeting with the opposition, Mantega did not present the text of the proposal. The leader of the PPS in the Chamber, deputy Fernando Coruja (SC), said that the minister only passed a few slides with the general lines of the reform. Toucan senator Tasso Jereissati (CE) even asked for a copy of the slides, but the Economic Policy secretary at the Ministry of Finance, Bernard Appy, responsible for the presentation, said the copy was not available.

Dilma

Minister Dilma Rousseff (Casa Civil) criticized the opposition's demand that the government suspend the sending of MPs as a condition to vote on the reform. According to her, the proposal should be seen as a responsibility of all segments of society and not exclusively of the government. "I believe that the validity of the tax reform does not concern a government, but all those who are interested in the country's growth," said Dilma. (Folhapress and Agência Estado)