Last week we first heard from Nikos Androulakis and then Alexis Tsipras promise free transportation via public mass transit in Attica and Thessaloniki.
The first for young people up to 24 years old and the second for everyone. Both spoke of a costed proposal, in the first case amounting to approximately 30 million euros and in the second to approximately 250 million euros.
Let’s start with a basic premise: the cost of a measure is one side of the coin. The other side has to do with where the money will come from.
For example, public transportation has costs. Operating costs, payroll costs, just like any business. Consequently, the proposed measures must be funded by the owner—that is, the government, that is, the state, that is, the taxpayers.
So? Since the state derives revenue from taxes, the cost is passed on to taxpayers. And to those who do not use public transportation. And to the resident of a mountain village or a remote island or other areas in the periphery. Simply put, citizens should know if their taxes will increase.
The same applies to Alexis Tsipras’ proposal on energy and the “minimum guaranteed price for households and businesses” and the average reduction in costs “by 30%.” What will this mean, and what will be the different role he referred to?
Because here, too, things are simple: if the state’s profits decrease, then the state’s revenue decreases.
So? How exactly will other benefits or anything else be funded if revenue is decreasing across the board? And we’re not talking about subsidy policies. We’re talking about government interventions as a whole.
Could new taxes or tax hikes be hiding behind all these benefits? If nothing else, these points should be clarified as the programs are developed and presented.
Note: In any case, the passes are intended for vulnerable individuals throughout the country and are therefore not comparable in scale. They constitute a form of support, but they are accompanied by permanent measures, not one-time measures.
Note 1: Let’s clarify one more thing: in public transportation, there are monthly passes for 30 euros—13.5 euros at a reduced rate for students and other groups— there is a pricing structure that reduces the monthly cost, which likely does not amount to… 80 euros for “young people and the working class,” as the president of ELAS stated.
