ArmInfo. The Armenian Government may come across serious resistance by a number of persons who have formed a status quo on the Armenian market over the past few years, Mikayel Melkumyan, lawmaker from the Prosperous Armenia Party (PAP) faction, said in Parliament, when expressing his faction's stand on the Government's program.
He said that the PAP faction will take no part in the voting on the Government's program, because the document presented by Prime Minister Karen Karapetyan on October 20 has a lot of unclear wordings. In particular, it is necessary to understand what tools the executive body is going to use to create equal conditions for the economic entities. For instance, Marianna and Ashtarak Kat companies have been holding domineering positions on the Armenian dairy market for a long time and they will not be glad to see new competitors. "Can the Government resist the pressure? The dairy market is close for other producers," the MP said, noting that both companies are in a difficult situation due to the previously attracted loans.
He recalled that the high tax rates, customs and license payments, social and utility payments are among the factors hindering economic development. It is not clear whether the Government will quit its current fiscal policy aimed at filling the budget with any kind of funds. Melkumyan recalled that now there are nearly 80 thsd economic entities that submit their reports to the tax structures. 9.6 thsd of these 80 thsd economic entities pay VAT. This means that the state is unable to fix the turnover of the small and medium enterprises. This results in growth of shadow economy. The MP stressed the need to legalize the expenditures, which will enhance the quality of competition. But the Government's program lacks this, he added.