Government wants to rework state budget for 2013

Prague, Oct 23 (CTK) - The Czech government will ask the Chamber of Deputies to be returned the 2013 state budget bill so that it could redraft it, Finance Minister Miroslav Kalousek said Tuesday.

The reason is the dispute inside the senior government Civic Democratic Party (ODS) over the government-sponsored stabilisation package, including a tax rise.

Kalousek said he wanted to submit a new budget bill within a month.

The adoption of the government package was a precondition for the government to submit a budget bill with a Kc100bn deficit.

However, the government package, the aim of which was to save more than Kc20bn in the budget, failed to win a support of a a group of dissenters inside the ODS.

The rebelling ODS MPs refused to agree on a compromise at a meeting with the party leadership Tuesday.

Prime Minister Petr Necas (ODS) said it was not clear whether the government's stabilisation package would be passed at all.

According to the current law that the government wanted to amend through the planned package, both VAT rates should unify at 17.5 percent as of next year. The package aimed to raise both rates by 1 point to 15 and 21 percent.