The House of Representatives approved the 2024 budget according to the amendments made by the Finance and Budget Committee. The council adopted the proposal by MP Ibrahim Kanaan and voted on Article 10 of the budget, prohibiting treasury advances that violate public accounting laws. Articles one through eleven were approved without change, as amended by the Finance and Budget Committee, which included loans and support for municipalities, noting that the project comprises 96 articles.
MP Kanaan announced during the budget session: "We obligated the government to take a reform step by returning to the House of Representatives for additional appropriations so it does not borrow and spend as it wishes without limits as was previously the case."
Additionally, the National News Agency reported that the House began studying Article 12 regarding deductions from municipal funds for placement elsewhere, and approved Article 13. Article 14, concerning tax obligations, particularly for concerts, was canceled since it was already included in the project, and Article 15 was approved. Article 16 concerning the tax due on accounts was also approved, stipulating that the tax should be paid according to the rate set by the Central Bank of Lebanon.
The council approved Articles 18 to 30 without modification, which relate to paying taxes and fees based on the exchange rate, including municipal fees. Later, the National News Agency reported that the council approved Articles 30 to 38. There was a discussion about the increase in municipal fees, particularly a tenfold increase for housing and twentyfold for businesses, but no resolution was reached, leaving the matter to the end of the session. Following that, Article 39 regarding the judges' assistance fund was discussed. The council approved Articles 40, 41, and 42 related to the notary tax and profit declarations. The Minister of Labor in the caretaker government mentioned "imposing fees on those wanting to hire foreign workers."
Furthermore, the House approved Articles 43, 44, 45, 46, and 47. Article 43 related to traffic fines increased tenfold. The council also approved two articles concerning taxes on alcoholic beverages. Article 46 imposed fees on owners of beach resorts who deny citizens access to the beach. The council approved the article concerning the profit percentage on industrial and commercial companies.
The council also approved Articles 48 to 52, including those related to income tax, in addition to Articles 53 to 59, which pertain to the maintenance of sports facilities for a renewable period of nine years. Articles 60 to 69, related to general fee amendments, were also approved, as was the penultimate article, which modified the electoral candidacy fee, increasing it to 200 million Lebanese pounds.
The council approved Articles 70 to 77, including those related to fees on external transactions, registry exits, taxes on departing travelers, and environmentally friendly new cars, with several taxes increased significantly. Articles 77 to 88 were also approved, imposing fines on the profits of "Sarafa" for non-employees based on a proposal from the Democratic Gathering.
In this context, caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati indicated that "over the course of two days, I listened to the discussions and opinions of the MPs, most of which are constructive and contribute to correcting what needs to be corrected based on fruitful cooperation between the government and the parliament." He pointed out during the budget discussion and approval session that "some believe that their staying in the political scene hinges on operating the machine of insults and lack of civility, inciting sectarianism, thinking that this will provoke us to respond in kind, forgetting that they deserve neither praise nor blame."
Mikati explained that "today we are in a session discussing the budget, which is one of the most important priorities of governments as it primarily ensures the financial order of the state," adding, "Approving the budget is one of the most crucial tasks of the House of Representatives to ensure the continuity of public utilities and the order of the state's accounts and to complete the proper democratic process." He stressed that "parliamentary work has recently become a station for media confrontations, especially if we objectively examine the essence of the amendments being adopted during discussions."
Mikati noted that "differences in starting points and perspectives within the logical framework of the topics at hand are part of the nature of work and its requirements. Still, some categorize it as catastrophic acts to build a false glory upon it." He said, "What struck me during the discussions was the attempt by some to divert attention from their direct responsibility and the responsibility of the MPs to elect a new president by directing accusations at the government and at me personally of usurping the powers of the President of the Republic and overthrowing the constitution." He considered that "the accusations directed cannot be overlooked or brushed aside, especially since I emphasize in every Council of Ministers session the necessity of electing a new president."
Mikati indicated that "the behavior I adopted at this stage aligns with what was determined by the Constitutional Council, which issued a decision numbered 6/2023, which settled the constitutional matter of government sessions as well as the constitutionality of the mechanism used to convene them and how decisions are made in the Council of Ministers." He saw that "any pretext to obstruct the Council of Ministers is weak, and they say that you rejected government law projects that were then described as chips, and the reasons were the absence of the whole component of Lebanon from the Council of Ministers."
Mikati continued: "Today the government is constitutional and complete, and when I argued this with them, they said: not everyone who appears to be Christian. This statement is disgraceful and constitutes an insult to the ministers participating in the government, their presence, and the great work they are doing." He emphasized that "the responsibility of the Prime Minister means bearing the burden, and the burden is associated with authority, and it is illogical and unacceptable to speak of the responsibility of the Prime Minister while overlooking the powers and authority granted to him by the constitution."
Mikati stated that "according to Article 64 of the constitution, the Prime Minister is the head of the government of all Lebanon and is responsible for implementing the general government policy, having the right to lead and authority over the Council of Ministers, ministers, departments, and public institutions, and to oversee and monitor the implementation of this policy." He noted, "I have taken the initiative and will continue to initiate sending the necessary letters to ministers when necessary to urge them to fulfill their duties because any shortcoming falls under the responsibility of the Prime Minister."
He added, "I will continue to do everything possible under the constitution and my national conscience for the public interest and to ensure the continuity of public utilities." Mikati emphasized that "in the context of the discussions, we also heard accusations against the government of handing over the decision of the country to political parties, which is absolutely incorrect."
He pointed out that "our firm and repeated stance focuses on adhering to all international decisions and agreements, from the armistice agreement signed in 1949 to resolution 1701 and all relevant international decisions." He stated, "We reiterate our call for a ceasefire in Gaza as it is the necessary entry point for all solutions, and this position is based on political realism."
Mikati added, "Since the first day of the Gaza war, I announced that the decision of war is not in our hands but in the hands of Israel, and the critics and supporters among the Lebanese will know the content of this message. We are advocates of a diplomatic solution under the auspices of the United Nations." He remarked that "within the correspondence between me and the U.S. Secretary of State, I responded to an urgent message with the official stance that focuses on working to achieve sustainable and long-term stability in the region," noting that "according to my message to the U.S. Secretary of State, stability is achieved by imposing a permanent ceasefire in Gaza to secure humanitarian aid for the besieged Gaza population, which will allow the resumption of meetings for the exchange of detainees."
Mikati called for "the resumption of tripartite meetings to resolve the remaining disputes between Lebanon and Israel by implementing all treaties and UN resolutions, starting from the 1949 ceasefire treaty to the implementation of UN resolution 1701" and for "an international initiative aimed at achieving a lasting solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and reviving the two-state initiative that will guarantee just and comprehensive rights for Palestinians and sustainable security for Israelis."
Mikati affirmed the commitment "to keep the war away from Lebanon, and the diplomatic and negotiating approach remains the real and guaranteed path to achieving lasting stability, starting with halting the aggression on Gaza and embarking on a just and equitable solution to the Palestinian cause based on the establishment of the two states," reiterating a call for "the international community to stop Israeli violations, provocations, and assaults on Lebanon."
Regarding the file of Syrian refugees, he stated: "We have left no effort spared regarding refugees and have raised this file in all international forums in pursuit of the desired solutions," revealing that he "received recent data from the UN migration organization. The general directorate is arranging it and taking all necessary measures to mitigate this suffering."
Regarding the budget, Mikati confirmed that "this budget is not an ideal budget in normal conditions but a budget that aligns with the economic, security, social, and international conditions Lebanon is experiencing without forgetting the negative regional climates affecting the country's movement." He remarked, "We have sought and continue to seek rescue and address the successive crises since 2019, the most significant being the halt of banks, COVID-19, and the Beirut port explosion."
He pointed out, "We are working to preserve depositors' rights through the projects and proposals that must be cooperated on between the government and the parliament to put them on the path to resolution." He added, "The draft budget law for 2024 we are discussing addresses the government's priorities and sets the groundwork for beginning recovery from the crushing crises the country has experienced in recent years, and to complete what was achieved with the 2022 budget in terms of unifying the exchange rate, enhancing revenues, and removing financing pressures from the Central Bank of Lebanon."
Mikati noted that "recent stability in the exchange rate is due to increased state revenues and withdrawing liquidity from the markets, as well as the Central Bank of Lebanon's abstention from pumping liquidity into the markets." He clarified that "it should be noted that the state budget in 2019 reached more than $17 billion while in 2022 we managed the country with approximately $800 million."
He stressed, "We managed to stop the collapse and began serious recovery. In the account at the Central Bank of Lebanon, there are more than 100 trillion Lebanese pounds in cash, and we have more than one billion dollars, of which 150 million is fresh and 850 million is in dollars." He stated that "we need to scrutinize the waste that occurred in previous years; for example, one public institution had a monthly budget of one million dollars, and we managed it with $28,000."
He acknowledged, "It is true that there is a need for structural reforms in various fields such as tax evasion, combating smuggling and corruption, and modernizing some outdated laws, but these structural reforms do not yield results in the short term but rather in the medium and long term." He noted that "in the meantime, there is a need for expenditure on salaries, wages, and social sectors such as health and education, and addressing poverty should have the largest share of revenues included in the proposed investment expenditure law."
He pointed out, "We are currently working on several reforms, including re-examining the tax reform law, customs reform, and reviewing the public accounting law, as well as reforming and automating the public administration." He revealed, "In the upcoming session of the Council of Ministers, we will present, as we pledged, the topic of providing financial incentives for the public sector," explaining, "Some MPs raised the issue of administration by demanding a comprehensive survey of the administration sent to the parliament. We complied with the request and sent a complete study of about 200 pages on the reality of administration, but we have yet to hear any remarks."
Mikati confirmed that "administration is declining either due to retirement or resignation; regarding delegation or assignment in the first category during vacancy." He noted, "We have 32 vacant positions, and 14 directors were appointed by delegation to fill the vacancy. Among those 14, there are 8 from the same sect and 6 from sects not originally occupied."
He explained that "regarding the file of public maritime properties, the previously estimated revenues were approximately 56 trillion L.L.; however, due to the government's issuance of Decree 11258/2023, the estimated revenues within the draft budget for 2024 have become around 2.55 trillion L.L." He confirmed that "the government, through the Ministry of Public Works and Transport, has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Directorate of Geographic Affairs in the Army Command to conduct a new comprehensive survey of all occupations of maritime properties and to automate this information."
Mikati said, "From a preliminary reading of the results of the aforementioned survey, significant discrepancies have emerged between the reported areas occupied and those actually occupied by violators of these properties, which will undoubtedly significantly increase revenues."
He explained, "Concerning the unification of the exchange rate, the intention is to avoid the large fluctuations that emerged during previous periods, but there is no intention to stabilize the exchange rate, for which we have paid heavy costs due to its rigid linkage to the U.S. dollar." He confirmed that "to achieve the goal of unifying the exchange rate, the Central Bank of Lebanon is studying various means to achieve it and to avoid the negative consequences that may arise from it."
Mikati indicated, "The economy has witnessed some growth after negative growth for several years, but full recovery requires all the reforms outlined in the government's reform program, while any reform process will extend over a medium-term period, while the budget remains within a one-year framework."
He noted, "The desired reforms to revive the economy pass through legislation independent laws from the budget that the government has referred some to the parliament for approval, while others will be sent to the esteemed parliament in the coming weeks." He remarked, "Today we are discussing the budget that we submitted within the required time frames while the proposed laws and recovery plans would have better served our interests if they were tied to timelines to hasten their discussion in the House of Representatives. We are ready to study them together, and we accept any proposal to finance them."
Mikati questioned, "Why burden the budget beyond its practical framework? Nevertheless, listening to different perspectives and suggestions constitutes constructive work that benefits the public interest if it comes far from populist exaggeration for political gains."
He confirmed that "approving the budget in its constitutional timetable serves the government's plan to enable stability, which positively affects the living conditions in the country and supports the resumption and economic growth to combat inflation, address public debt issues, and avoid a depreciation in the exchange rate."
Mikati stressed that "it must be noted that the success in ensuring the stability of the exchange rate starting in May 2023 came as a result of a fundamental improvement in treasury revenues due to the adjustment of fees, taxes, customs duties, and others, following a conservative financial management, which helped curb sharp fluctuations." He added, "It is necessary to resort to adopting an exceptional basis for ensuring state financing through treasury advances to continue public utilities and provide essential public services to citizens in the absence of the necessary and essential appropriations and under exceptional circumstances," noting that "we do not conceal this matter or deny it but have requested what would ensure the order of these advances from both financial and legal perspectives through a draft law that the government approved and sent to your esteemed Council."
He stated, "The revenues in 2023 were around 230 trillion L.L., and we spent from it, including the advances approved in the Council of Ministers, 204 trillion L.L., and we were forced to do so for the public interest and to run the state and meet its obligations."
Mikati explained, "There has been keenness to avoid creating financial needs beyond available capabilities, which contributed to stabilizing the exchange rate and reinvigorating foreign currency reserves." He mentioned that "one of the prominent objectives of the draft 2024 budget is to enable the treasury's financing capacity, which remains today a pillar of financial and monetary stability, as well as the most important element for the sustainability of public administrations and institutions and providing services to citizens and rebuilding an efficient economy."
He continued, "Here we refer to some members' criticism regarding 'manipulating budget figures and the budget deficit of 0%.' We are certain that the appropriations do not cover the actual debt service and arrears in this regard." Mikati stated, "The strong attack regarding taxes and fees holds much populism and injustice; there are no significant increases in taxes, and modifying fees does not constitute the burden that some mentioned."
He clarified that "the financial authorities do not seek to impose an additional tax burden on citizens as some have tried to portray and inflate by insinuating that the government wants to seize citizens' and companies' incomes." He emphasized that "the financial authorities do not seek to impose an additional tax burden on citizens as some have tried to portray and inflate by insinuating that the government wants to seize citizens' and companies' incomes."
Mikati added, "We are continually seeking constructive and positive cooperation, far from populism and mobilization that do not benefit and surely are not timely today." He remarked, "Those who enjoy negativity in the absolute can watch from the sidelines and let us work. The country needs effort, and we, as a caretaker government, do everything in our power to manage citizens' affairs and ensure the operation of public utilities."
He noted that "we are working on managing the affairs of all ministries, including those whose ministers boycott Council sessions, because our goal is to serve the citizen and his interests." At the conclusion of his address during the budget session, Mikati addressed the MPs saying: "Elect a president and leave us alone."
### Change in Lebanon Strong
Four MPs from the "Lebanon Strong" bloc – Cesar Abi Khalil, Charbel Maroun, Edgar Traboulsi, and Samar Al-Toum – left, while members of the finance committee Ibrahim Kanaan, Sleiman Aoun, and Alan Aoun remained due to House Speaker Nabih Berri's refusal to include the proposal they presented in the budget draft articles.
MP Sleiman Aoun had requested to speak on the basis of the rules, demanding the passage of the budget according to a law proposal previously suggested by MP Gebran Bassil, after caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati concluded his speech in response to the MPs and before starting the discussion of the budget articles.
House Speaker Nabih Berri responded by saying, "This is unconstitutional, unlawful, and a violation of the internal system, and I told MP Gebran Bassil this matter will not pass."
### Ibrahim Kanaan
Head of the Finance Committee MP Ibrahim Kanaan responded to Najib Mikati during the budget session regarding treasury advances, stating that "any additional funding required must come with additional appropriations for us to discuss as MPs," adding, "You cannot just spend treasury advances that violate the law!"
