BEIRUT — “Finance Minister Youssef Khalil asks the cabinet to remove article 109 from the budget proposal,” Education Minister and acting Information Minister Abbas Halabi told a press briefing Wednesday, after the cabinet’s second meeting to discuss the budget for 2022.
Here’s what we know:
• Article 109 of the draft budget document prepared by Khalil gives him and other ministers exceptional powers in amending tax rates and brackets over a period of two years.
• In a press release on Jan. 24, the Amal Movement has already expressed its refusal to grant any exceptional powers to the government regarding financial and tax matters. Khalil was selected by Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, head of the Amal Movement, for the position of finance minister.
• Halabi said that Prime Minister Najib Mikati clarified to the cabinet members that even though it was the finance minister who prepared the budget, all ministers’ comments and suggestions will be taken into consideration.
• Halabi also emphasized Wednesday that the 2022 draft budget was made in Lebanon and the International Monetary Fund had no role in its preparation.
• There will be a special session to discuss the articles on which there was disagreement, Halabi added.
• The acting information minister also said there will be a session Thursday to continue the discussions and one on Saturday to go over the expenditures ministry by ministry .
• He concluded by saying “We are taking our time to go over the budget point by point, we thought we would have finished the first reading by now, and since there is no meeting on Friday, we hope we will be done soon.”