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| A view of the Vi Xuyen iron ore processing factory in northern Ha Giang Province. A recent report says that inspection of government mechanisms to protect the environment are not observed by many operators, particularly those working illegally. — VNA/VNS Photo Minh Tam |
During the National Assembly (NA) Standing
Committee's discussion session in Ha Noi yesterday, NA deputies urged
for measures to enhance the quality and effect of supervision on the
implementation to meet the management requirement, and prevent and
punish any violations.
A report heard at the session regarding the
implementation of policies and laws related to natural resources
exploitation showed that the inspection and supervision on losses of
resources and environmental protection had not been paid enough
attention. Meanwhile, the exploitation technology was said to be
obsolete, awareness in work safety low and violations on environment
regulations were high.
According to the report, the number of enterprises involved in mining had increased from 427 in 2000 to nearly 2,000 currently.
Most of the enterprises, especially the
large-scale ones or joint-ventures with partners from developed
countries, were reportedly performing well in the implementation of
policies and laws.
However, the report pointed out some shortcomings
of the implementation, including the lack of synchronisation between
exploitation planning and local socio-economic development, the shortage
of evaluation on environmental impacts and the lack of pledges on
environmental protection.
One of the most concerning issues came from the
issuance of licenses on exploitation and processing. A report showed
that from 2005 to 2008, people's committees in central-Governmental
cities and provinces had issued nearly 3,500 licenses for exploitation,
seven-fold higher than the total number of licenses issued by the
Government in 12 years.
The protection of unexploited natural resources
and the set-up of a non-exploitation zone had also not received enough
attention.
During discussions, NA deputies also asked for
clarification regarding the role of the State and the responsibilities
of relevant ministries and sectors in managing the exploitation.
In the morning session yesterday, the deputies
discussed the revised Law on Tax Management and the draft Law of
National Reserves.
After hearing the report on the revision of the
tax management law by the NA's Committee on Finance and Budgets, the
deputies discussed the responsibilities of tax management agencies in
tax refunds, the role of the National Assembly in regulating the
deadline of tax payments and the enforcement of the law.
Regarding illegal tax declarations or late tax
payments, the deputies said that the current fine of 0.05 per cent a
day, which equates to 18.25 per cent a year, was too low, and would lead
to losses in the State budget.
The deputies also agreed that one of the major
reasons for revising the law on tax management was to deal with the loss
of revenue.
They urged the National Assembly to take charge
of tax exemptions, while the extension of tax payments should be for the
Government, which meant the Prime Minister would have the right to
extend tax payments for every individual case, including groups,
corporations, and enterprises.
Concluding the session, NA Chairman Nguyen Sinh
Hung said that the revision of the tax law must balance the targets of
creating favourable conditions for tax payers and tax collectors, as
well as tightening the inspection and supervision to prevent violations
on tax regulations.
"Simplicity and transparency will help avoid wrongdoings in tax management," he said. — VNS
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