End of secret budgets, privatizations, and other Lula da Silva promises

Lula da Silva was elected President of Brazil with an agenda focused on social issues.

Promises such as ending hunger, “including the poor in the budget and the rich in income tax,” and making “people eat picanha again” were made by the then-candidate during the campaign.

The R$600 Family Grant was the flagship of the PT candidate’s proposals.

Besides the social agenda, Lula promised a series of policies already well-known from his previous governments, such as the return of infrastructure programs and the resumption of agrarian reform, and the reversal of policies adopted by President Jair Bolsonaro (PL, right), such as those related to the purchase of firearms.

In the economy, the candidate promised greater participation of the State as a promoter of the country’s economic growth, besides signaling the abandonment of the current government spending control policy.

Below, remember the 16 promises made by Lula for his third term.

NOT TO RUN FOR REELECTION

Lula promised during the campaign that he would not seek reelection. Shortly before the second round of voting, he posted on his social networks that he would be “a one-term president”, referring to the new term in the Planalto Palace, which he has already commanded for two times.

A statement with the same content was also made during the first round of voting.

Lula da Silva said at an event: “Everybody knows that an 81-year-old citizen can’t want reelection. Everybody knows. Nature is implacable. Lula is 77 years old today.

The president-elect promised to end the rapporteur’s amendments, and baptized a “secret budget”, but he will not even have to deal with this in his government.

On Dec. 19, the Federal Supreme Court (STF) ruled the rapporteur’s amendments unconstitutional.

Most Justices understood that they did not comply with the requirements of isonomy, legality, morality, publicity, impersonality, and efficiency that should be applied to public spending.

END OF PRIVATIZATIONS

Lula was against the privatization of state-owned companies. We will not privatize Petrobras, Correios, the Bank of Brazil, or the Caixa Economica. The State will go back to being the inducer of the economy. And finance micro, small and medium entrepreneurship,” said Lula da Silva during the campaign.

In the case of the Correios (Post Office), there is a privatization project in progress, but the proposed sale ended up stuck in Congress, and there is no interest from the PT in following up on the project.

There is also no intention of the new government to privatize Dataprev, which manages the INSS database, or the Port of Santos.

The Infrastructure Ministry of the Bolsonaro government had already conducted feasibility studies for the sale of both companies. Still, Lula da Silva’s team is unlikely to go ahead with these plans.

Marcio França (PSB), future Minister of Ports and Airports, confirmed that Lula da Silva’s government would not proceed with privatizing the Port of Santos.

In addition, Petrobras’ refinery sales processes – started in the Bolsonaro administration but without closing contracts – have been halted at the request of the transition government. However, the new government should not review the divestitures already made.

EBC, Nuclep, PPSA, and Conab should also be controlled by federal government.

CHANGE IN THE PETROBRAS PRICE AND DIVIDEND POLICY

The presiPresident indicated that he intends to end Petrobras’ international pricing policy.

“We will not have dollarized gasoline prices,” Lula said on several occasions during the campaign, referring to the pegging of fossil fuel prices in Brazil to the price of a barrel of oil on the international market.

Petrobras’ transition team is also considering changing the Petrobras dividend policy, reducing the percentage of profit passed on to the company’s shareholders.

The goal would be to use part of this money for investments focused on expanding the company’s refining capacity.

TAX SIMPLIFICATION AND INCOME TAX EXEMPTION FOR THOSE EARNING UP TO R$5 THOUSAND

The PT promises to treat tax reform as a priority in the economy.

“We will make the wealthy pay income tax, using the resources collected to invest intelligently in programs and projects with high capacity to induce growth, promote equality and generate productivity gains,” says Lula’s government program submitted to the TSE.

During the campaign, Lula da Silva also defended taxing profits and dividends and taxing large fortunes, but he understands that the issue faces resistance in Congress.

The future Minister of Finance, Fernando Haddad (PT, progressive-globalist), reaffirmed that tax reform will be a priority of the new government and said that he should take advantage of the proposed amendment to the Constitution (PEC) 45/2019 that already deals with the subject.

Bernard Appy, the intellectual author of the PEC, will be the special secretary for tax reform.

Appy’s proposal proposes the unification of IPI, ICMS, ISS, PIS, and Cofins into a single one, the Tax on Goods and Services (IBS).

“There are two PECs on tax reform being processed. I will talk to Appy, who formulated the most advanced proposal (PEC 45/2019). We will move it to approve it.”

“It needs to be negotiated. I will express opinions about specific changes that I would make. I want to talk to Appy about these points to facilitate the approval of the text,” Haddad said to the Metropoles website.

So far, it is known that the new government intends to make the reform in two phases.

Reduce the taxation on consumption and simplify federal taxation with the creation of the National Value Added Tax (IVA), taking advantage of the discussions that are already taking place in Congress around this theme with the PEC 45; and change the taxation of income and assets.

In this second aspect, Lula da Silva promised to exempt those who earn up to R$5 thousand (US$900) per month from Income Tax – currently, the exemption applies to those who earn up to R$ 1,903.98.

A R$600 FAMILY GRANT

During the campaign, Lula said that he would keep the current R$600 (US$367) paid to the beneficiaries of the Auxílio Brasil, which will be called Bolsa Família again.

Besides this amount, the PT candidate promised an additional R$150 per child up to six years old for families who benefited from the program.

Lula da  Silva must fulfill this promise as soon as he takes office since the PT has negotiated with Congress to open a space of almost R$170 billion in the 2023 Budget, beyond the spending cap.

The amendmenDec. 21ed on Dec. 21.

With this, the R$600 and the additional R$150 is guaranteed as of January.

REAL INCREASE IN THE MINIMUM WAGE

The discussion about the readjustment of the minimum wage was one of the topics that dominated the agenda of both candidates in the last days of the runoff campaign.

Lula da Silva, who during his government gave real gains to the minimum wage, promised to resume the policy of granting increases above the inflation rate.

This is another promise that was fulfilled via the PEC (Transition), with the articulation of the transition government.

The 2023 Budget, approvDec. 2222 by Congress, already foresees a minimum wage of R$1,320.

The R$18 more than the proposal sent to Congress by Jair Bolsonaro’s government represents a natural increase of 2.7% and an additional cost to the public coffers of R$ 6.8 billion.

THE RETURN OF THE PAC AND MINHA CASA MINHA VIDA

Lula da Silva promised to rescue the Growth Acceleration Program (PAC) to resume infrastructure works stalled throughout the country.

“The PAC was built with businessmen, governors, and mayors. I intend to resume this as of January 1stJan. 1the elections,” said Lula da Silva.

Lula also indicates that he intends to resume the Minha Casa Minha Vida program, which subsidizes the purchase of the real estate by low-income families.

DEBT NEGOTATION

One of the central promises of the PT during the campaign was “Desenrola Brasil”, a debt renegotiation program for families earning up to three minimum wages.

They proposed the creation of a R$7 billion federal guarantee fund to renegotiate the debts of 68 million people.

“This fund is a guarantor of last resort. The company will give the discount; this resource will not be passed on to individuals and will be a last resort for the company if that renegotiation is not honored,” said Aloizio Mercadante, coordinator of Lula’s government program, during the campaign.

The program, however, was little mentioned during the transition government.

REPEALING THE SPENDING CAP

Lula da Silva also has as the basis of his proposals the repeal of the spending cap as of 2023.

A first step has already been taken, with the approval of the PEC (PEC of transition), which foresees the substitution of the rule by a new fiscal framework that needs to be approved until August of next year.

Neither Lula da Silva nor Haddad indicated which fiscal anchor they intended to adopt, but the president-elect promised to build, together with Congress, an alternative proposal maintaining fiscal responsibility.

In addition, Lula indicated that the fiscal rule needs to be feasible and favor investments.

STRENGHTENING OF FARMÁCIA POPULAR AND RETURN OF MAIS MÉDICO

The PT promises to strengthen the Single Health System (SUS) and to resume policies such as the Mais Médicos program – but this time without re-establishing the partnership with the Cuban dictatorship.

Also part of the promises is strengthening the Popular Pharmacy program and the reconstruction and promotion of what the party calls the “health economic and industrial complex”.

The PT’s government plan also says: “It is urgent to give conditions to SUS to restart attending the demands that were repressed during the pandemic, listen to people with sequels from covid-19 and continue the recognized national vaccination program.

STRENGHTENING PROUNI AND FIES

Lula da Silva promised to strengthen primary education, from kindergarten to post-graduation, coordinating articulated and systemic actions among the Union, states, Federal District, and municipalities, taking up the goals of the National Education Plan.

Lula also said that his government will strengthen Prouni and Fies, in order to increase access to higher education. The government plan, however, does not present detailed proposals on how it intends to overcome the “serious learning deficit”.

MEDIA REGULATION

Lula da Silva is in favor of regulating the media but has been trying to say that this would not be a way to try to censor criticism of the government if he is elected.

During an interview with the podcast Flow, he said it is necessary to “call society to discuss” media regulation, but he is “an enemy of censorship. ”

There are television channels that only speak nonsense, rudeness, and offend. There has to be regulation, the final rule of electronic media was in 1962.

We can do it like the English and American legislation; nobody wants a rule like in Cuba”, he said.

A proposal that should come from the PT is the regulation of digital platforms like Facebook and Youtube, focusing on the restriction of content considered untrue.

THE RETURN OF THE DISARMAMENT STATUTE

Lula da Silva promises to “take back the Statute of Disarmament,” making it more difficult for citizens to own guns.

The revocation of President Jair Bolsonaro’s decrees, which relaxed the quantity and type of weapons that civilians can purchaseuld be one of the first actions of the new government in the area of Justice and Public Safety.

The new government is also studying the implementation of a program to buy weapons that, after the repeal of the decree, would become illegal.

StPresidentublic security, the President of the Workers Party (PT) intends to make agreements with neighboring countries to combat drug trafficking.

He also said that he wants to recreate the Ministry of Public Security, currently linked to the Ministry of Justice, in the second moment of his government, besides creating a Single System of Public Security (SUSP).

ZERO DEFORESTATION

Lula pledged to promote the cities’ ecological transition with investments in public transportation, housing, basic sanitation, and social eqPresidentIn addition, the President of the Workers Party (PT, progressive-globalist) says that one of the priorities will be to quickly release resources from the Amazon Fund.

The PT’s government plan also foresees the fight against environmental crime, with the promise of zero deforestation.

RESUMING AGRARIAN REFORM

This was not a subject that was broached much during Lula da Silva’s campaign so as not to create friction with agribusiness, but a “resumption of agrarian reform” is in the government’s guidelines that the PT candidate presented to the Electoral Justice when he ran for office.

“We have to start asking how much it costs us not to do things in this country. How much did it cost not to make people literate in the 30s or 40s? How much did it cost this country not to do the agrarian reform when it had already been done worldwide?” Lula published in his social networks in August.

The PT intends to incorporate lands back into the National Agrarian Reform Program, which, according to the acronym, was dismantled by the Bolsonaro government, which bet on land titling.

“There are many public lands, small areas near large cities, that can serve for agrarian reform without creating conflict with agribusiness,” said in late November Deputy Pedro Uczai (PT-SC), coordinator of the Agrarian Development nucleus of Lula’s transition government.

With information from Gazeta do Povo