Top official from the Ministry of Finance advises the super-rich
The Ministry of Finance is currently preoccupied with the budget crisis, and the next construction site is opening up. A ministry employee is alleged to have helped the super-rich with their taxes. Lindner reacts by reviewing the internal rules of conduct.
Christian Lindner's Green and Social Democratic coalition partners are demanding consequences for a top civil servant from his Federal Ministry of Finance (BMF). According to research by ZDF, the head of the department is alleged to have helped the super-rich to avoid paying taxes by passing on information.
As reported by ZDF, the official, who was at an event in a non-official capacity, passed on the latest ministry knowledge. According to ZDF, she announced that a tax concession for real estate transfer tax could be abolished at the beginning of the year. This abolition of the tax concession for the wealthy could be solved, "we have toolboxes, at least I have quite a few".
The Greens and SPD are demanding far-reaching consequences for the woman and generally stricter rules for civil servants in the ministry. The deputy financial policy spokesperson for the SPD parliamentary group, Armand Zorn, told the "Tagesspiegel" newspaper: "While police officers or nurses pay their taxes responsibly, the super-rich hire consultants to help them rigorously avoid taxes with perfidious strategies." This is unfair to the majority of taxpayers. The German state loses 30 billion euros a year in this way.
"If a civil servant from the Federal Ministry of Finance, who has an official and fiduciary relationship with the state, then assists the super-rich and their advisors in tax avoidance, that is completely unacceptable," said Zorn. The SPD MP and spokesperson for the influential "Netzwerk Berlin" in the parliamentary group called for consequences: "I expect the House leadership to examine the facts and draw the necessary conclusions." Effective rules for the secondary employment of civil servants are fundamentally necessary.
"Enormous conflict of interest"
Green budget politician Bruno Hönel called for the dismissal of the top civil servant: "In my opinion, the civil servant in question cannot continue to work at the BMF," he told the "Tagesspiegel" newspaper. "This is an enormous conflict of interest that should not have occurred in this way." If top civil servants favored the most privileged parts of society, this would harm democracy.
Lindner must make the avoidance of such conflicts of interest a priority, Hönel demanded. "Either the existing regulations are too lax or there is a lack of enforcement. In both cases, improvements must be made," said the Green politician. The official's statements, particularly with regard to loopholes in inheritance tax, made reform necessary.
As a result of the report, the Federal Ministry of Finance announced that it would review its rules of conduct for civil servants' secondary employment. In the case of the civil servant, "possible consequences under civil service law are currently being examined", according to a ministry spokesperson. Minister Lindner has also commissioned a review of the rules of conduct. Secondary employment must be reported to the ministry as the employer and in many cases is also subject to approval, the spokesperson explained. There are limits on time and remuneration.
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Source: www.ntv.de
