CPIs will not hinder the progress of reforms, says Tebet

The Minister of Planning and Budget, Simone Tebet, stated that the inquiry commissions (CPIs) in the National Congress should not interfere with the process of tax reform and the new fiscal framework. The information was given to Folha de São Paulo, on the night of this Monday (1).

“The opposition itself wants to move forward with the tax agenda. This Congress is reformist. It is embracing tax reform, just as it was with the autonomy of the Central Bank and Social Security. That’s why things will move forward,” he says.

The minister also demonstrates confidence with the debate on the exclusion of ICMS tax benefits from the calculation base for federal IRPJ and CSLL taxes, to be judged by the STF (Federal Supreme Court). The decision, according to her, will be decisive in bringing in the revenue the government needs and avoiding the presentation of a third package of measures.

According to the minister, the new fiscal rule “is a cog in the machine” and “the silver bullet” is the tax reform. “Now we need to understand the moment Brazil is going through. It’s a more polarized country, we don’t have a majority in Congress and we can’t make mistakes with what’s easy,” she said.

Regarding the MST, Americanas and Sports Betting CPIs, the minister said that they “are far from the reality of the Brazilian people”. “They will not have this protagonism, this showcase, and with that paralyze Congress, as it was in the pandemic”, he said.

The only CPI that the minister believes will have a greater impact is the CPI of January 8th. Teber pointed out that there will be “an initial exposure” of the commissions and then they will “fall into weariness, personal attacks, rudeness”. “A large part of the population is worried about jobs and food. I would say that 70% of the population is not worried about the CPI”, said the minister.