Gas prices have risen sharply in recent weeks. Households without a fixed energy contract could spend up to 900 euros more on energy next year. This will shrink the purchasing power charts presented by the cabinet on Budget Day. In recent days, the Ministry of Social Affairs has calculated new purchasing power figures: they will also be examined tomorrow morning.
The government can quite easily reduce the energy tax. Households see this immediately in a lower energy bill. The same applies to the VAT on energy: it is now 21 percent and could be reduced temporarily – for example for a year.
“These are the most logical and relatively easy buttons to turn,” said a source. The cabinet does not want to change the third tax item on the gas bill – the Renewable Energy Storage (ODE) -. This storage is used to provide subsidies for sustainability, such as solar energy and wind turbines. “These are subsidies that make us less dependent on gas and oil. It would be foolish to skimp on that now.”