The Lower House's budget committee
passed a series of amendments to the government's 2023 budget
bill during a marathon session overnight, including one removing
a controversial measure that would have enabled retailers to
refuse card payments for amounts up to 60 euros.
Opposition parties criticized the move, saying it would have
made tax evasion easier, and the European Commission also picked
fault with it.
The amendment means shops, cafes and bars will not have the
right to refuse cards and demand cash, even for the payment of
small things such as a coffee. Indeed, they face fines if they
do so.
The App18 bonus that young people receive to spend on cultural
items and activities, such as books, concerts and theatre shows,
on their 18th birthday has been revised too.
The 500-euro bonus will not longer be universal but will only go
to teens that belong to families with earnings up to a certain
level.
Then there will also be another 500-euro bonus for youngsters
who get full marks in their high-school final exams.
Another amendment sets out a mechanism which, in some cases,
enables people to switch from variable-rate mortgages to
fixed-rate ones, amid the difficulties many households are
facing due to the double whammy of interest-rate hikes and the
cost-of-living crisis.
The government is in a race against time to get the package
approved by the end of the year.
The bill is set to go to the floor of the Lower House on
Thursday and then be put to a confidence vote on Friday.
It should then go to the Senate next week for final approval.
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