FDP accuses Strobl of hypocrisy in VAT debate
The FDP parliamentary group in Baden-Württemberg has accused Deputy Minister President Thomas Strobl (CDU) of hypocrisy in the debate on the expiring VAT reduction in the catering sector. For days, he had insulted the FDP in the federal government in the worst possible way, "now he would have had the opportunity in the Bundesrat to agree to a Bavarian initiative to maintain the 7 percent rate and is not doing so", said the chairman of the FDP/DVP state parliamentary group, Hans-Ulrich Rülke, on Saturday in Stuttgart.
Bavaria had failed in the Bundesrat with a proposal to permanently retain the lower VAT rate in the catering sector, which expires at the end of the year. A corresponding motion for a resolution to extend the lower tax rate of 7 percent for food to drinks failed to gain a majority in the state chamber on Friday.
In this context, Strobl had recently spoken of gastronomy being sacrificed to the traffic light age. "Now the schnitzel and roast beef in our restaurants have to be used to finance this messed-up and unconstitutional financial and budgetary policy of the Streit-Ampel." The FDP in particular, led by their Finance Minister Christian Lindner, had done the restaurant trade a disservice.
In the past, the Greens in the south-west had expressed skepticism about retaining the VAT reduction. In its coalition agreement, the green-black government alliance has agreed to vote unanimously in the Bundesrat.
The Hospitality industry in Baden-Württemberg criticizes Deputy Minister President Strobl's stance on taxes, as he had previously criticized the FDP for not supporting a lower VAT rate, but failed to back a Bavarian initiative to maintain it. The lower VAT rate for food in catering establishments, which is set to expire by the end of the year, could potentially impact the financial situation of many restaurants in the industry.
Source: www.dpa.com
