Salary scale report referred to commissions

$2.3 billion in accrued taxes

The sub-committee in charge of studying the new salary scale for public employees has completed its work and submitted a report to Parliament's General Secretariat. It stressed in its report the importance of carrying out the necessary measures to better provide public sector workers with their rights. Prospective additional revenues could reach $2.3 billion.

According to head of this committee, Ibrahim Kanaan, the report includes three sections. The first concerns rights and justice. It contains the rights of public employees, in light of the inflation indicator, which has recorded 120 percent since 1996.

The second concerns revenues and recommends applying new taxes in order to finance these wages. It consists of increasing VAT to 15 percents on some products, and raising customs duties on shoes and cloths, alcoholic beverages, among other products. Fees will also be raised on phone bills, real estate transactions and permits, fiscal stamps.

Revenues will be raised from pubic maritime properties, and illegal constructions. New revenues also concern exceptional permits to raise the exploitation coefficient of new buildings.

Kanaan said that these new taxes do not concern low-income citizens.

One section of the submitted report includes some reforms needed to be applied on public sector employees.

Kanaan called on members of parliament to adopt the new salary scale before the end of the year.