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FOR Communication 34/2018: The amendment to the Act on the Supreme Court does not restore the rule of law | 2018-12-18
moreAt the end of November, the Polish Parliament adopted another, seventh amendment to the Act on the Supreme Court, which "reinstates" the judges of the Supreme Court and the Supreme Administrative Court.
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FOR Communication 32/2018: The 100th anniversary of regaining independence and the standard of living in Poland | 2018-11-08
moreOn the eve of World War I in 1913, at the end of the Second Polish Republic in 1938, and at the end of the Polish People's Republic in 1988, the standard of living in Poland was about 20% of that in the USA. Due to the development during the Third Republic, it stands at around 50% now.
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FOR Communication 31/2018: Misunderstandings about the upgrade of Poland’s rating by Standard & Poor's | 2018-10-29
moreThe upgraded rating of Poland by Standard & Poor's led to many different interpretations, some of them erroneous or exaggerated. Many observers perceived it as an improvement in the assessment of Poland's long-term economic prospects, while in fact it is only a reversal of the cut from January 2016, the beginning of the Law and Justice government. Poland’s rating was already on the current level earlier, in 2007-2015, even though these were the years of the global financial crisis and the solvency crisis in the euro area.
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FOR Communication 30/2018: Polish Aviation Group: a twofold mystification paid for by the Reprivatisation Fund | 2018-10-26
moreWhen the public opinion focuses on yet another strike of employees of LOT Polish Airlines, few commentators analyze the state funded transformations of the carrier. On 10 October, LOT became officially part of the state-owned Polska Grupa Lotnicza (PGL, Polish Aviation Group), a holding to which assets of three other aviation companies were also transferred (LOT Aircraft Maintenance Services, LS Airport Services, and LS Technics).
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FOR Communication 29/2018: An expensive gift of PiS: citizens' plans turned upside down | 2018-10-25
moreThree weeks before November 12, some MPs from PiS (The Law and Order Party) submitted a draft bill to make this day a public holiday. Late in the evening on the next day, 23 October, the project was adopted.
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Communication 28/2018: The budget for 2019: new taxes | 2018-10-04
moreThe fast economic growth, in place since 2014 due to the good economic situation in the global economy, leads to an increased state's income. Combined with the limited growth rate of some expenditures, it gives the government more room for maneuver.
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FOR Message 24/2018: Relief for starting a business: ministerial notes do not solve the problem created by the interpretation of the Social Security Office in Gdańsk | 2018-09-03
moreRelief for starting a business and introduction of unregistered business activity are two of the few real, albeit minor, improvement introduced in the "business constitution," although it should be stressed that such minor changes cannot replace a comprehensive reform of the tax and social security systems.
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FOR Message 23/2018: Budget 2019: unprepared for an economic downturn | 2018-08-31
moreThe crucial factor for the safety of public finances is the deficit of the entire public finance sector. The state budget is responsible for less than half of the expenditure. In addition, the public finance sector includes budgets of local governments, the Social Insurance Institution, the Agricultural Social Insurance Institution, the National Health Fund and a number of other entities.
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FOR Message 22/2018: "Cultural games" or culture of lobbying? | 2018-08-23
moreWhen politicians start to distribute taxpayers' money, it invites lobbying. Even the leading industries start to pretend that they need support. Polish video game industry is no different. The market capitalization of CD Projekt has already overtaken KGHM. At the same time, it lobbies for CIT tax relief for the so-called "Cultural games" through the Polish Games Association, together with other leading producers.
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FOR Message 21/2018: The Supreme Court acted lawfully when it suspended national provisions and referred questions to the European Court of Justice. | 2018-08-09
moreThe five questions referred for a preliminary ruling regarded recent changes in the laws regulating the judicial system.
The questions complement the proceedings conducted by the European Commission, which also has doubts regarding the Act on the Supreme Court.