Argentina's President Javier Millay announced on Wednesday that his government is preparing a structural tax reform that will abolish 90% of existing taxes in 2025.
Milley announced the plan, along with other policies she aims to implement in her second year in office, marking the end of her first year in office. That included plans to negotiate a trade deal with President-elect Donald Trump's administration after he takes office in January.
Tuesday marked one year since Millay's death. took office On December 10, 2023, he became Argentina's first liberal president, succeeding former socialist president Alberto Fernández. At the time he took office, Argentina was facing a severe economic crisis that had worsened dramatically as a result of Fernández's disastrous socialist policies. Mr. Millais implemented a series of drastic “shock therapy” measures to avert the country's economic collapse and avert a hyperinflationary spiral.
Millay's policies succeeded in reducing Argentina's inflation rate, from 25.5% in December 2023. 2.7 percent In October 2024, the country will also have had a trade surplus for 10 months now. November.
Additionally, in his first year in office, Millais spearheaded a dramatic overhaul of Argentina's government, reducing the number of ministries from 18 to nine at the start of his administration. first day and completely replacing other institutions – for example, Argentina's bloated AFIP revenue service was disbanded and replaced by a much smaller institution. november. The Argentine president also introduced a series of fundamental reforms called for by Congress. passed In late June.
Mr. Millais marked his first year in office by announcing the following achievements: speech Tuesday evening with ministers and members of the administration. He reviewed the results of his policies and announced a series of future measures.
In a speech lasting about 35 minutes, Millay thanked the Argentine people for electing him and for “enduring, like you, the first difficult months of his government” and that their sacrifices “were in vain.” No,” he declared.
“There is a saying: “Good times make weak people, weak people make difficult times, difficult times make strong people, and good times make strong people.'' This year, we “Argentines have proven themselves to be strong men and women, forged in the heat of difficult times,” Millay said.
“We have proven that when people touch the bottom of the abyss, the urgency to make deep and irreversible changes becomes a true force of nature,” he continued.
Millay emphasized that his administration will continue its economic reforms through 2025, and to that end, it is currently finalizing a “tax structure reform” that will reduce national taxes by 90 percent while restoring tax autonomy to Argentina's regions. He said he is doing so. .
“Therefore, next year there will be a real tax competition between the Argentine provinces to see who will attract the most investment,” Millay said.
The Argentine president has guaranteed that next year the existing currency control policy inherited by the government will also be abolished, saying there will be “free competition of currencies” and that this will “make the currency available to all Argentines.” '' explained Millay. They want it in their day-to-day transactions. ”
“This means that from now on all Argentines can buy, sell and claim in dollars or whatever currency they consider, except for the payment of taxes, which for the time being will continue in pesos,” Millay said. said.
Argentina's president insisted that to accelerate the country's economic recovery, it was also essential to “cut the foreign trade networks that are currently suffocating us.” Argentina is a member of the Mercosur regional trading bloc. The group has been heavily criticized by Millais in the past, and he currently serves as its interim chair. last week.
Mr Millais proposed eliminating tariff barriers between Mercosur member states, stating that one of the administration's goals in Mercosur is to “increase the autonomy of member states vis-à-vis the rest of the world, allowing them to trade freely. ” he added. With people you like and according to your convenience. One of those trade deals, he said, will be a free trade agreement (FTA) with the United States, hopefully next year, which “should have been signed 19 years ago,” Milley said. said.
“Imagine how much we could have grown in the last 20 years if we had traded with some of the world's greatest powers. All that growth was lost to us with the simple signature of a group of bureaucrats who refused to accept the benefits of free trade. It was taken from me,” Millais said.
“In this way, Argentina will stop turning its back on the world and become a major player in world trade again, because without trade there is no prosperity, and without freedom there is no trade,” he continued.
Millais said her government would continue to reduce formalization and public spending throughout its second year through a “ruthless audit” aimed at eliminating unnecessary government offices, secretariats, public companies and state institutions.
Other upcoming policies announced by Milley include proposals for “anti-Mafia” legislation inspired by the U.S. Racketeering and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) to combat organized crime, federal police reform, and “counter-narcoterrorism.” This includes the creation of troops. Argentina is working with Mercosur to combat drug trafficking in the tri-border area it shares with Brazil and Paraguay, announcing that “plans for the construction and research of new nuclear reactors are imminent.” “Small or modular reactor technology,” etc.
Millay said Argentina will hold interim parliamentary elections in 2025, “unlike the usual behavior of politicians who spend their time wasting the money of all Argentines in election years.” , stressed that the administration would “do something different” and continue to implement economic reforms.
“It is unique in the history of modern democracies for governments to start an election year without expansionary fiscal and monetary policy, because that is precisely the logic of the past that sunk us.” Mr. Millay said. “We are not going to fall into this temptation that seduced caste, because we are the future and we are the prosperity.”
“We will continue our program of adjustments to reduce taxes and return funding to the private sector, and we will put on the table a radical reform agenda developed around the pillars I have talked about today. It means you can legally choose what you want for your country,” he continued.
The Argentine president said the country is moving towards a “prosperous future” and concluded that 2024 will be remembered as “the first year of a new Argentina.” Millay went on to stress that unlike other times in this country's history when hope was “based on empty words, we have delivered results.”
“You can see it, you can feel it. That future of prosperity is within our reach. There is nothing we can do to prevent it. Either get on the train of progress or be run over by it.” said Millay.
Christian K. Caruso is a Venezuelan writer who chronicles life under socialism. You can follow him on Twitter here.
