Photo: pirati.cz
"We want the Green Deal to help us get rid of our dependence on fossil fuels, especially from Russia. It will bring prosperity to people, effectively tackle the climate crisis and protect those most vulnerable to its impacts. Citizens must benefit from the Green Deal, otherwise it will not achieve its goal," commented Pirate leader Ivan Bartos.
"No one has yet been able to describe what exactly is wrong with the Green Deal. No one has had the courage to say what should be changed and how. We have it. The European Commission has made good progress on the Green Deal. But the whole modernisation plan lacks the necessary investment funds. It is a good plan, but there is no money for it. As Pirates, we know how to fix it. We know what has gone wrong, we know how to improve it. We have inspiration from the USA and good European practice. And we offer concrete solutions," Bartoš outlined.
The first step is to repeat the American success by creating a European version of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA).Marcel Kolaja describes the details of the proposal: 'The European tax system is fragmented, outdated and uncompetitive. While in the US the average tax rate is 28 percent and in OECD countries the average is 34 percent, in the European Union we are at 41 percent. So there is definitely room to get the economy moving by cleverly reducing the tax burden. On behalf of the Pirates, we are advocating a shift to the American model of supporting cleaner industry through predictable tax breaks. With this targeted incentive, we can rapidly increase investment in sustainable industries, which will help business, citizens, the economy, and the protection of our planet and environment. Based on the US experience, this could be up to €15 billion a year."
In 2022, the US federal government responded to the crisis with the IRA. In addition to combating inflation, this was a combination of pro-growth measures, including the setting of a minimum corporate tax of 15 %, as well as tax credits for the acquisition of renewable and nuclear energy, the purchase of electric cars, the production of green hydrogen and the domestic production of batteries and photovoltaic panels.
"This move has brought a huge boom in investment across the sector in America. We want the same for Europe and the Czech Republic. We can achieve this by introducing pro-growth measures that are part of the IRA. We will therefore initiate treaty changes that will allow corporate tax to be negotiated in the European Union through the standard legislative process. We will advocate that corporate tax exemptions can be voted on by qualified majority. We will also propose a corporate tax exemption for investments in cleaner industries, including nuclear power - similar to the US," said Kolaja.
"In addition to boosting private sector investment, the European Investment Bank also needs to be made more efficient. It is a state-owned bank currently managing a portfolio of projects serving the objectives of the European Union with a total volume of around EUR 550 billion. The more money we get into it, the more sustainable projects and innovations it will support and the more benefits it can generate for companies," said Mikuláš Peksa, adding that the Pirates will therefore propose that the European Investment Bank should allow all EU citizens to voluntarily join additional pension savings. Currently, this is only possible for its employees.
"This will create a voluntary pillar of the pension system that all citizens across the European Union can rely on. This would be a win-win for everyone. It would give citizens who want to provide for their old age an alternative savings option, while giving the European Investment Bank a new flow of funds to invest in the development of sustainable projects and innovation. These now make up some 58 % of its portfolio, which we will expand further in this way. We believe that a more action-oriented approach by the EIB will enable it to attract at least EUR 10 billion of investment each year to modernise the European economy," Peksa explained.
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