The Chairman of the Finance and Budget Committee, MP Ibrahim Kanaan, stated during a session of the committee in the House of Representatives that the members "reiterated the constitutional observations noted in the previous session regarding tax amendments, emphasizing the need for them to be enacted through a specific and comprehensive law." He highlighted that the committee rejected the piecemeal approach adopted in the 2024 budget without a tax vision, alongside a specification of its economic and monetary impacts. The committee also demanded that the government provide it with the revenues generated from Article 22 of the 2022 budget extending to 2023, as well as a detailed list of mixed sector institutions and their employees’ salaries to base future decisions accordingly.
In this context, several fellow MPs raised the issue of the exchange rate and the need for its unification or liberalization within a clear plan to limit the complete dollarization and preserve the national currency. However, they emphasized that this must be done with consideration of market conditions to protect the state’s rights and enhance confidence in the national economy.
The committee also discussed the fairness of imposing a tax on Lebanese individuals’ salaries in dollars for the portion they receive in dollars, considering it an inappropriate measure under the current financial and economic conditions. Therefore, the MPs considered that the budget proposal as referred by the government contains dangerous articles that burden citizens at this stage, necessitating amendments or cancellation.
Additionally, the committee asked the government about the emergency war plan it proposed, inquiring about its costs and how it will be financed, and called for the Central Bank to attend a future session to provide insights into the financial and monetary effects of the actions the government intends to implement in case the situation deteriorates further.
