The government will make amendments to the Law on Personal Income Tax to make it appropriate to the current situation in which the prices of all essential goods have increased, said Deputy Minister of Finance Truong Chi Trung at the government’s monthly press conference on March 2.

  

 Minister of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan 

The Law on Personal Income Tax was approved by the 12th National Assembly and it took effect on January 1 2009.

Recently, it was said that this law should be amended to fit the current situation in which people are being hit by the price storms.

Deputy Minister Trung said that the Finance and Justice Ministers discussed some points of amendments in the law. If the National Assembly approves the amendment, the amended law will be effective in 2012.

Chairman of the Government Office Nguyen Xuan Phuc said that at the monthly cabinet meeting on March 2, the government reached a consensus on the positive social-economic development in February and the first two months of the year. Industrial production in February grew 17.7 percent year on year while agricultural production saw crop areas equal to 94.1 percent, due to severe natural calamities. Export revenues in the first two months increased 40.3 percent year on year and more than quadrupled the target passed by the National Assembly.

Social security was ensured as the poor, lonely elderly, disabled people and families of fallen soldiers and war invalids receiving good attention while political security and social order was maintained, according to cabinet members.

At the meeting, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung told cabinet members to take all necessary measures to curb inflation and bring guest workers home from Libya.

According to the Minister of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs, Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan, by the second day of March 6,198 of 10,482 Vietnamese workers in Libya were evacuated, including 2,739 those who have already been flown home. More than 3,000 others are en route to neighboring nations. The State and manpower exporting companies will temporarily assist these workers with VND2 million ($100) each. The government will also have vocational and occupational policies for this subject.

Inflation control in order to stabilize the macro economy was highlighted as the top priority for 2011. The Prime Minister pointed out the need to reduce budget deficits, cut 10 percent of public spending and increase tax collection.

He instructed ministries and responsible agencies to tighten monetary policies, carefully manage banking deposit interest rates and foreign exchange rates and build a roadmap against heavy dependence on gold and USD dollars in business transactions.

 The Prime Minister called on ministries, industries and local administrations to take firm measures to increase efficiency in production and business, especially to raise productivity in agricultural production.

He instructed that the administration reform process should focus on streamlining administrative procedures with construction and land procedures to be in the spotlight during 2011, in favor of ordinary people and enterprises.

Dung added that the roadmap for market-oriented adjustment of oil and gas prices should continue this year, along with subsidies for the poor.

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