Spain's Deputy Prime Minister announced during the last Cabinet meeting that a major reform is being prepared for the nation's tax system. Sáenz de Santamaría did not point out that she, instead of Finance Minister Cristóbal Montoro, would take the lead on the tax system overhaul.
With total and thorough control over the country's tax future, she will create a system that is entirely different than the one that Montoro has put in place. Since Rajoy?s term in office began, Montoro has acted against the Prime Minister's electoral promises by enacting several tax hikes that have failed to increase tax revenues. The only thing he has been able to do is slash consumption and slow down economic growth.
Montoro's tax strategy also caused Rajoy's popularity to fall, even among those that voted for him. The core reforms that Sáenz de Santamaría is promoting seem to have a very different focus. They plan to broaden the tax base and lower tax rates. The Deputy Prime Minister could take on, one by one, several of the projects that the Finance Ministry can't seem to figure out.
For example, restructing the country's Public Administrations. Sáenz de Santamaría is leading the commission tasked with carrying out this new tax reform. Its program will be made public soon. Meanwhile, Monotoro's team had tarried for months in an attempt to figure out local government reforms, which could very well end in failure. Rajoy is making a complete reversal in his economic policy while laying the foundations for a future change of government. And to avoid any more mistakes along the way, he is giving Sáenz de Santamaría the reins to drive Spain's economy toward its future.
