Against a VAT increase: a tax that weighs more heavily on those who have less

Context

TL;DR

• The No side contests the VAT increase
• The vote is scheduled for November 29
• The PC indicates an average of 180 francs annually per household
• The 13th AVS pension payment will be paid starting in December

Key facts

• Who → PC, VPOD, SISA and young left-wing parties
• Where → Bellinzona
• When → November 29th
• Amount → 180 francs per year per household
• AVS profits → over 10 billion in total in 2024 and 2025
• AVS assets → more than 60 billion francs
• Effective date → December and subsequent years

The Bellinzona conference

On Monday morning, in Bellinzona, the Communist Party, the VPOD Trade Union, the SISA Trade Union, the Socialist Youth, the Young Greens, the Communist Youth and the Workers' and People's Party presented the reasons for the No to the initiative on the VAT increase intended to finance the thirteenth AVS. The vote is scheduled for November 29th.

The position of the Communist Party does not question the provision of the thirteenth annuity. The party claims that the payment will begin in December and continue in the following years, regardless of the outcome of the VAT vote. The target of the conference is therefore the financing method indicated in the initiative, not the existence of the service.

The cost indicated for households

After the 2024 increase, a new increase in VAT would, according to the PC, lead to an average additional cost of 180 francs per year for each household. This is the average indicated by the party for a household economy; the source does not provide an amount for the individual consumer.

Even keeping the reduced rate unchanged, the party adds, the increase would continue to affect various daily expenses. Those mentioned include clothing, fuel and various services. However, the source does not indicate the share attributable to each item.

The annual number allows only an arithmetic calculation: 180 francs divided by twelve months is equivalent to 15 francs per month. It is not a new estimate of the PC, nor an individual forecast, but the conversion of the average value reported in the news.

The conference therefore defined the topic in terms of average costs for households, not an equal amount for each person. The text does not contain the composition of the average, the reference incomes and a separate calculation for clothing, fuel or services. The value remains the one indicated by the PC as an annual average, without a table of individual cases.

Operational details

A comparison: consumption and wages

The most concrete comparison offered by the source concerns the basis of the funding. In the arguments put forward by the Giovani Verdi, the VAT increase is described as a regressive tax that weighs proportionally more heavily on low incomes. The alternative indicated by the PC instead relies on payroll contributions. The difference is therefore between two explicitly named bases: consumption on the one hand, salary on the other.

The two approaches

The source specifies that the proposal for payroll contributions takes up the approach initially supported by the promoters of the 13th AVS pension payment. The PC presents it as a way to distribute any additional funding needs in proportion to salary, with half of the contributions borne by employers. The source does not, however, quantify the contribution required or show how the levy would change for individual salary brackets.

The second comparison concerns progressivity. The Giovani Verdi argue that people with a low income spend almost all of their earnings on daily consumption and, consequently, pay tax on a substantial share of their income. People with high incomes, by contrast, can save a larger share and, proportionally, contribute less. They add that even reduced rates for some essential goods would not eliminate the greater tax burden for those with less.

«It is not a no to the 13th pension payment, but a no to those who want to make those who have less pay for it».

The SISA statement sums up the political line set out at the conference. It does not argue that the 13th pension payment should be scrapped: it objects to the financing having to come through VAT. No individual simulation can be derived from the text, nor can a comparison be made between the cost for a specific household and the alternative payroll contribution. The verifiable fact is the different basis indicated by the two options.

Key points

The other issues raised by the Communist Party

Profits, assets and urgency

To argue that there is no financial urgency, the PC cites two figures relating to the AVS: more than 10 billion francs in total profits recorded in 2024 and 2025, and assets exceeding 60 billion. These figures are presented by the party in support of its position; the source contains neither a separate verification nor an annual breakdown of the profits. The text therefore allows the total for the two years and the asset threshold to be reported, but not to assign them a breakdown by individual year.

The same argument distinguishes financing the thirteenth payment from the discussion of the retirement age. The PC rejects the idea that accepting the VAT increase could prevent a future increase in the retirement age. According to the party, this will remain a demand of right-wing forces regardless of the outcome on November 29. The political conclusion expressed is that any increase in the retirement age should be opposed regardless of the outcome of the vote.

This passage is an assessment by the Communist Party, not an announcement of a decision already taken. The source indicates neither a concrete proposal on the retirement age nor a timetable for discussing it. The documented fact is the connection that the PC rejects: for the party, voting on VAT would not settle the question of the retirement age.

The scope for cross-border workers

The text concerns the vote on VAT and the thirteenth AVS payment in Ticino political coverage. Consequently, the source does not provide an individual amount for a cross-border worker or a specific effect on these matters. The only explicit focus remains the AVS and the way in which the No camp proposes to finance its thirteenth payment.

Among the separate official references for the general framework of pension provision is the 2026 AVS overview table; this news item, however, does not use that table to add figures or rules to the debate. To learn more about pensions without confusing the vote on VAT with other matters, consult pension calculator.

Source: tio.ch