Yupina Ng
Tuesday, December 08, 2015
Lawmakers yesterday urged the financial secretary to include one month's free rent, rate exemptions and one-off relief measures for low and middle-income groups in his next budget.
During a Legislative Council financial affairs panel meeting, Wong Kwok-hing of the Federation of Trade Unions said the government should consider assisting people in the lower income brackets, which will also stimulate domestic demand.
Wong said he realized the economic slowdown was still going on despite pressure for a US Federal Reserve interest rate hike.
"There are many people in the grassroots who are facing economic pressures and need help," Wong said.
Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong chairwoman Starry Lee Wai-king urged the government to consider waiving rent for public-housing tenants and rates for homeowners.
"Some foreign accounting firms have said we will have thousands of billions of dollars in reserve, so the DAB would like to propose the rent and rates waivers to relieve the burden on the low-income groups," she said.
She added that many people had been complaining about expensive rates because of rising rents.
The Civic Party's Dennis Kwok Wing-hang, representing the legal sector, proposed the salaries tax on the middle class be lowered.
Kwok said the middle class are in "dire straits" as they have been paying high taxes and receiving little help.
"Those who earn HK$120,000 to HK$1 million a month pay 30 percent of all salaries tax," he said.
"Waiving collection of the 30 percent of salaries tax will not have a big impact on the government's financial situation."
Financial Secretary John Tsang Chun-wah said that the government is consulting various parties.
He said the government will monitor the economic situation and may consider rolling out relief measures for industries.
"We have launched one-off relief measures in the past and they are different from recurrent measures." he said.
"We will make a decision based on the fiscal position and economic situation but we have yet to draw conclusions."
However, Tsang said a reduction in salaries tax was "impossible."
"As the manager of Hong Kong's finance, this [forgoing the 30 percent of salaries tax] is something that is impossible," he added.
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