Government announces plan to collect taxes it is owed
Germany, discovering a gap between money it should have and money it has, has announced it will pursue the difference. The pursuit takes the form of a 26-point plan, a new office with a long name, 1,500 hires, and an artificial intelligence assigned to read paperwork. Fraudsters have been formally warned that no one should rest assured, a warning now entering its second century of continuous service.
The measures arrive on the traditional schedule: sentences will lengthen next year-ish, cash registers become mandatory for jewellers in 2028, and the crypto rules will change at a date to be specified. The Porsches will be held for 180 days, then, in most cases, given back.
For perspective, the article helpfully recalls Cum-Ex, in which the state refunded taxes nobody paid, repeatedly, for over a decade, and the voluntary-disclosure counter, open since 1919, where confession has always been accepted in lieu of consequence. Both were also, in their day, addressed with plans.
The honest majority will continue paying without fuss, as noted approvingly by the minister; the dishonest minority will continue consulting advisors, as noted by history. Some billions will genuinely be recovered, which is not nothing, and will disappear into a €555 billion budget, which is where billions go. A follow-up plan is expected. Nothing happened today. Correct — pending audit.