Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính presides over the government meeting on law-building on Thursday. — VNA/VNS Photo

HÀ NỘI — Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính chaired a law-building meeting on Thursday, stressing the role of policies and regulations in socio-economic growth and urging implementation guidelines for promulgated laws. 

The session focused on the draft amendment to the Law on Value Added Tax, as well as options to utilise the increased revenues and optimised recurrent expenditures of the 2023 state budget. 

Delegates at the meeting said that perfecting the regulations on value added tax (VAT) will contribute to the overall management of revenues while ensuring transparency and feasibility of the law. 

It will also improve tax management and ensure correct and adequate revenues for the state budget.

The draft's contents that need clarification and adjustment include people and goods subjected to VAT payments, particularly products that require preferential tax policies.

These include goods that align with the national development strategies, green and digital transformation, innovation, high-value industries and publications that promote the country’s image. 

PM Chính added that tax policies must also address the current bottlenecks and ensure a balance between the interests of the state, people and businesses, especially in encouraging innovation and science-technology development, emerging industries, domestic manufacturing and processing, increasing exports and reducing imports, as well as preventing tax loss in tourism. 

Deputy PM Lê Minh Khái and the Ministry of Finance are tasked with taking into consideration comments from the meeting for the amendment and ensuring the quality and schedule of the legislation project. 

Agreeing with the delegates regarding the spending options for the state budget, PM Chính also emphasised compliance with legislation laws and the country’s priority in infrastructure development, particularly traffic infrastructure. 

A total of 18 legislation projects and 52 legal documents are expected to be presented at the upcoming seventh session of the 15th tenure National Assembly in May.

PM Chính said that ministers and ministerial-level leaders must focus on perfecting the law projects in accordance with regulations and are responsible for their content and quality. 

Government leaders must also accelerate the issuance of implementation guidelines for laws and ordinances that have taken effect since January 1, 2024. 

Particularly, the detailed guidelines for the Land Law, Law on Credit Institutions, Housing Law and Law on Real Estate Business must be submitted for review before May 15 this year. 

Stressing the need to continue perfecting policies and frameworks, addressing bottlenecks and utilising resources for socio-economic development, PM Chính recommends investing in human resources, streamlining the procedures to adjust legal documents while also preventing corruption and strictly handling violations.

He added that ministries and departments must improve the capacity for policy response and promptly mitigate issues in business and production, decentralisation, streamlining administrative procedures and reducing compliance costs for people and businesses through legislation. 

They should also conduct research and propose new regulations in adaptation to the fourth industrial revolution for socio-economic growth. 

It is also necessary to strengthen coordination between ministries and departments, consulting with experts, scientists, businesses, people and experiences from other countries, as well as policy communication to facilitate law implementation. — VNS