Speaking to reporters in parliament on Monday, Piotr Müller said the government had already reduced value-added tax (VAT) on gas, electricity and heat from networks, while also decreasing excise duty, the state PAP news agency reported.
“However, it is of key importance that we combat the cause of high prices of gas and electricity,” Müller added.
He identified two such causes: “gas blackmail by Russia, with the potential upcoming launch of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline,” and “the inefficient, ill-conceived policies of the European Union, allowing a market where the prices of CO2 emissions allowances are being manipulated.”
“We have introduced an anti-inflation shield, but steps also need to be taken to counteract this manipulation of prices,” Müller told reporters.
“This means, on the one hand, successfully blocking the launch of Nord Stream 2, and, on the other, carrying out a thorough, profound reform of the CO2 emissions trade policy.”
Earlier on Monday, Poland’s Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki published a column on the euractiv.com website, calling for a reform of the EU’s emissions trading scheme (ETS).
'Potential additional measures'
Müller said the government was monitoring the situation in case further anti-inflation measures were necessary.
“We are preparing potential additional measures, which could offset or mitigate the impact of the rising prices of electricity and gas,” he added.
Meanwhile, a one-time cost-of-living allowance comes into effect on Tuesday as part of efforts to help poorer households cope with inflation, the PAP news agency reported.
According to media reports, energy bills for some customers have jumped by several hundred percent, mainly for businesses and local governments, but also for some housing associations and communities that operate their own gas-fired boiler systems.
(pm/gs)
Source: PAP