By the end of 2023, the amount of outstanding tax debt reached over 163,000 billion VND.

On the afternoon of May 20th, the National Assembly continued its plenary session to hear reports from members of the Government on the results of practicing thrift and combating waste in 2023 and the verification report.

In the Report on the results of implementing austerity measures and combating waste in 2023, Minister of Finance Ho Duc Phoc stated that state budget revenue in 2023 reached 1,754 trillion VND, an increase of 133,400 billion VND (an 8.2% increase compared to the projected figure).

Policies on tax, fee, and land rent exemptions, reductions, and extensions totaled nearly 194,000 billion VND. State budget expenditure in 2023 is estimated at 2,109 trillion VND, equivalent to 101.6% of the projected figure, an increase of nearly 74,000 billion VND.

The management of state budget expenditures was carried out proactively and strictly according to the budget plan, ensuring compliance with policies and regulations, thoroughly saving on recurrent expenditures, and cutting unnecessary or slow-to-implement spending tasks. The total savings in state funds and capital in 2023, according to reports from ministries, sectors, and localities, amounted to 83,000 billion VND.

According to the report, by the end of 2023, the public debt/GDP ratio is estimated at approximately 37%, government debt/GDP at approximately 34%, and the government's direct debt service/state budget revenue at approximately 19%, within the limits permitted by the National Assembly.

Government-guaranteed borrowing and debt repayment in 2023 are estimated to be within the approved limits, with the total outstanding guaranteed debt as of December 31, 2023 estimated at approximately VND 279,719 billion, equivalent to about 2.7% of GDP, a decrease of VND 18,243 billion compared to 2022.

Minister of Finance Ho Duc Phoc (Photo: Quochoi.vn).

Reviewing this report, the Chairman of the Finance and Budget Committee, Le Quang Manh, pointed out several limitations and shortcomings in the implementation of the results of practicing thrift and combating waste in 2023.

In particular, the government's management, implementation, and the synchronized and close coordination between tax authorities, People's Committees at all levels, and relevant agencies in handling outstanding tax debts have continued to improve.

"The tax debt situation is trending upwards and is becoming increasingly high, adversely affecting the handling and recovery of tax debts. As of December 31, 2023, the tax debt amounted to VND 163,591 billion, an increase of 10.7% compared to December 31, 2022," Mr. Mạnh stated.

In addition, the Chairman of the Finance and Budget Committee stated that there are still shortcomings and limitations in the process of improving the institutional framework that have not been overcome. Some ministries and sectors have not implemented the legislative plan correctly, and there is still a delay in including laws and ordinances in the legislative drafting program; the delay in issuing detailed regulations and guidelines for the implementation of laws and ordinances continues to occur.

There is also a delay in budget allocation, especially the allocation of increased revenue and savings from the central government budget in 2022, which was only implemented near the end of the year. The amount of carried-over funds remains large and is slow to be rectified, causing waste and reducing the efficiency of capital utilization.

The disbursement of public investment capital in some ministries, sectors, and localities has been slow due to various reasons identified in reports over the past years, but no decisive solutions or effective measures have been implemented. The results of public investment capital disbursement in 2023 show that 91 out of 115 ministries, central agencies, and localities had disbursement rates below the national average, with some units having disbursement rates below 10% of the planned capital.

Chairman of the Finance and Budget Committee Le Quang Manh (Photo: Quochoi.vn).

Notably, the equitization and divestment of state-owned enterprises still face many difficulties and obstacles, resulting in slow progress. In 2023, only 5 enterprises underwent state divestment, generating 24 billion VND; while corporations, general companies, and state-owned enterprises divested from 7 enterprises, generating 206.3 billion VND.

"Some state-invested enterprises and projects are operating at a loss, inefficiently, are slow to address or rectify problems, or are still facing legal procedural obstacles," the audit report emphasized.

The National Assembly's Finance and Budget Committee recommends that the Government accelerate the restructuring of land and housing assets; approve business plans and business partnerships of agencies, organizations, and enterprises to avoid waste, losses, and the risk of corruption. It also recommends continuing to improve the national database on land, public assets, labor, etc.; and strictly manage and address the wasteful use of land resources, office buildings, public housing, and public welfare facilities in some localities.

Addressing obstacles in implementing the autonomy mechanism of public non-business units, especially the autonomy mechanism in the fields of health, education, science and technology; providing guidance on determining job positions and the structure of civil servants according to professional titles; and promptly issuing a list of basic and essential public service activities in each sector and field.

Research and develop solutions to improve the mechanisms and policies for equitization, divestment, and restructuring of state-owned enterprises, enhance the efficiency of production and business operations, and preserve and develop state capital invested in production and business activities at enterprises.

There are effective solutions to increase efficiency and promote thrift and combat waste in the production and business activities of enterprises and individuals through stabilizing the monetary and credit markets; rationally managing exchange rates and interest rates; reducing lending interest rates; removing inappropriate barriers in circulation and distribution; and resolving difficulties in the real estate and labor markets .

Source: https://www.nguoiduatin.vn/het-nam-2023-so-no-thue-dat-hon-163000-ty-dong-a664444.html