Director of the Department of Finance: It will be difficult to achieve the budget revenue target.
(Baonghean.vn) - This was the statement made by the Director of the Department of Finance, Nguyen Xuan Hai, when participating in the discussion at the 8th session of the 17th Provincial People's Council on the morning of December 11th.
| Clip: Duc Anh. |
Regarding the targets set in the Provincial Party Congress Resolution for 2020, which aimed for budget revenue of 25,000 – 30,000 billion VND, but which have only been achieved at a modest 13,000 – 14,000 billion VND so far, the Director of the Department of Finance, Nguyen Xuan Hai, frankly stated: "It is very difficult for us to achieve the set target."
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| On the morning of December 11th, delegates held discussions in the assembly hall. Photo: Thanh Cuong |
According to Nguyen Xuan Hai, Director of the Department of Finance, when setting the targets for the term, high expectations were placed on budget revenue, because Nghe An province possesses many resources and has many advantages such as: abundant land, a favorable geographical location for investors, and upgraded transportation infrastructure including airports, seaports, and border gates…
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| Delegate Nguyen Xuan Hai - representative from Dien Chau district - speaks in the assembly hall. Photo: Duc Anh |
However, Nghe An still faces many difficulties and challenges, especially regarding the mechanisms and policies for attracting investors, which are subject to frequent changes and therefore somewhat affect the province's overall budget revenue.
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| A view of the BSE factory in the Southeast Economic Zone. (Archive photo) |
On the other hand, some projects expected to have high investment levels, such as the thermal power plant project and the steel plant project with a planned investment of $1 billion in phase 1, have not yet been implemented. Similarly, the progress of large projects like VSIP, the cement plant, and Hoa Sen Steel after their establishment in Nghe An remains slow, despite the province's numerous preferential policies.
Meanwhile, the province's domestic revenue in the 2016-2018 period fell short of targets. Revenue streams that were expected to generate high returns, such as those from central government enterprises, local enterprises, FDI enterprises, and non-state enterprises, all failed to meet their targets. Furthermore, input tax revenue from businesses decreased, and no value-added tax was generated.
High tax arrears are also one of the reasons for low budget revenue. According to the Director of the Department of Finance, as of November 30, 2018, tax arrears reached 1,210 billion VND, an increase of 231 billion VND compared to December 31, 2017. Of this amount, collectible arrears totaled 772 billion VND, while uncollectible arrears amounted to 437 billion VND.
To recover tax debts, the tax authorities have been decisive in managing and enforcing tax collection. Mr. Nguyen Xuan Hai stated that businesses with large debts have been dealt with through enforcement measures. For businesses and establishments that are deliberately delaying payment, authorities are widely publicizing information about tax debts through mass media.
In addition, the Provincial People's Committee has directed the tax department and relevant departments to establish a working group to regularly inspect, review, and urge the collection of outstanding tax debts.
In addition to the above, the Director of the Department of Finance also clarified several issues related to cement support for new rural construction and balancing the targets for land use fees in 2019.