The latest re stability tax
Bjarni Benediktsson minister of finance did not answer directly when asked by Rúv if he knew beforehand that prime minister Sigmundur Davíð Gunnlaugsson. He only said that he and the prime minister were working closely together towards lifting the capital controls. He said work was ongoing to prepare Bill, expected before summer, but was not firm on a date.
He reiterated that the estates were a threat to stability and stability tax – not a concept heard until mentioned by the prime minister on Friday – was intended to do just that: preserve stability when it came to lifting capital controls. He did not want to answer exactly who would pay this tax or how but the tax would help authorities to control the process of lifting the controls. He also repeated what the prime minister said, that the estates had not put forward any useful plan for lifting controls.
The winding-up boards of the estates will no doubt beg to differ: they have put forth plans, which have not been answered.
At an open committee meeting on Monday governor of the Central Bank of Iceland Már Guðmundsson was asked about the tax. He said it could be compared to “pollution tax” – the estates were like a source of pollution within the economy and the tax was to mitigate the effect of this pollution. What exactly this Delphic utterance meant in practice he would not say.
For more on this issue see the two most recent blogs here below.
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Bjarni has been so weak and ineffectual. It’s seems unlikely he would pull out of the coalition (which he should the PM’s plan sounds like a crisis in the making) but is there any talk of a leadership challenge?
Hallam
15 Apr 15 at 2:45 pm
On a different subject, am I right that the second Kaupthing trial starts on Tuesday? If so, can you remind me who are the defendants, and what the charges are? There could be so many defendants and charges.
Tony Shearer
17 Apr 15 at 9:55 am
Hallam, no talk of leadership challenge. Bjarni has now accepted what Sigmundur has stated. Remains to be seen what the outcome will be: a Bill presented, or not.
Tony, the case starting on Tue., in Reykjavík District Court, regards market manipulation. Those charged are:
Hreiðar Már Sigurðsson,
Sigurður Einarsson
Ingólfur Helgason
Einar Pálmi Sigmundsson
Birnir Sær Björnsson
Pétur Kristinn Guðmarsson
Magnús Guðmundsson
Bjarki H Diego
Björk Þórarinsdóttir
Sigrún Davídsdóttir
17 Apr 15 at 10:08 am
Sigrun, Thank you. The evidence will be fascinating!! I wonder if their advisers such as Deutsche Bank and Brunswick will be called to give “evidence”?
Tony Shearer
18 Apr 15 at 1:09 pm
Tony, that’s a valid question. Haven’t seen the witness list so I don’t know. Remains to be seen…
Sigrún Davídsdóttir
20 Apr 15 at 8:17 am
Tony,
Some details from the opening day here:
http://grapevine.is/mag/column-opinion/2015/04/21/bankers-on-trial-again/
anrigaut
21 Apr 15 at 5:54 pm
[…] earlier Icelogs on capital controls see here. I don’t think there is any angle of this issue I haven’t covered earlier so for those […]
The latest on lifting capital controls at Sigrún Davíðsdóttir's Icelog
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