Finance Minister Magnus Brunner (ÖVP) defended the tax deferral during the Corona pandemic for the now insolvent furniture chain Kika/Leiner during question time in the National Council on Friday. He stressed that the group did not receive “special treatment” but was treated as similar companies.
FPÖ Secretary General Christian Hafenecker had criticized the fact that the Kika/Leiner group “attracted corona funds on a massive scale” and then “destroyed thousands of jobs”. Specifically, he wanted to know why the tax deferral was granted without collateral for an amount of 150 million euros. The finance minister responded to this with the corona-related change to the federal tax law – the legal basis for this was unanimous and therefore also decided by the FPÖ, Brunner recalled.
Companies relieved by postponement
The special measures adopted at that time would apply to all companies. The ÖVP minister explained that deferrals were usually granted interest-free to relieve companies facing liquidity constraints.
Given the company’s current restructuring plan with a 20 percent quota for insolvency creditors, the tax authority for large companies will file the claims with the regional court in St. Pölten, Brunner said. At the same time, the Finanzprokuratur represents the interests of the republic, checks everything for legal compliance and whether there are any further claims for reimbursement.
“Everyone is treated equally”
On the question from NEOS Mandatarin Stephanie Krisper about the role of the head of the Netherlands Authority for the Financial Markets (FMA), Eduard Müller, who allegedly intervened in favor of Benkos in a tax case in the context of the Kika acquisition and Leiner by the Signa Group around the Tyrolean investor René Benko, Brunner rejected the accusation of “exclusive care”. He is committed to the rules that everyone must abide by. There is no exclusivity: “Everyone is treated the same, for me there is no doubt and no discussion.”
Source: Krone
I’m Ben Stock, a journalist and author at Today Times Live. I specialize in economic news and have been working in the news industry for over five years. My experience spans from local journalism to international business reporting. In my career I’ve had the opportunity to interview some of the world’s leading economists and financial experts, giving me an insight into global trends that is unique among journalists.
