"NL: "Value added tax increase is a disaster for smaller florists"

A VAT increase from 6 to 9 percent will lead to a turnover loss of 52.4 million euro (3 percent) for Dutch florists, a loss of 415 jobs (4 percent) and to the bankruptcy of 3,000 florist’s shops. This is the conclusion of a research studying the effects of the tax increase that was ordered by the VBW (Association Florists Retailers).

A part of that VBW report

The director of the VBW Marco Maasse made the above numbers public during an event on the Plein in the Hague where florists, in collaboration with the Centrale Vereniging voor de Ambulante Handel (CVAH) (National Association for Ambulatory Trade) and the vegetable and fruit specialists united in the AGF (Potatoes Vegetables Fruit) retail trade, who also manifested last year in the Hague.

A picking garden of 400 square meters was set up on the Plein where people passing by and politicians could assemble a “Do not pluck me” bouquet and sign the petition “Stop the VAT increase”.

A disaster for florists
“It is unbelievable that the government is increasing the VAT without considering the effects that are disastrous for florists” says Maasse. “The VAT increase will mainly affect consumers with a small income for whom flowers and plants will simply become too expensive. This will also affect vegetables and fruit and many other victuals and the effects for other branches will be much the same”.

An image of the event posted on Twitter by the NOS politics correspondent Hans Andringa @hansandringa

The VBW director Maasse further points out the VAT-increase leads to much more costs for his branch than that it brings in for the public treasury. The yield for the government has been estimated by Decisio to be 21.3 million euro. “In the meantime florists will have to close shop, people are losing jobs and buying abroad is stimulated. Other retail points for flowers and plants will be affected by this in their daily business.”

VBW director Maasse: “The proposed measures not only have disastrous consequences for the florists but also for the consumers. I just can’t imagine that our government wants to be responsible for these economic consequences. We appeal to the politicians to revise these plans. For a number of reasons a VAT increase for flowers and plants is a bad plan and is not in line with the ambitions of the present coalition.

Twitter:‏ @erikderooij2

Spain and France

The VBW also claims that developments abroad show that the increase is not a good idea. In 2012, the Spanish government increased the VAT on flowers and plants from 8 to 21 percent with an enormous fall back in turnover for Spanish florists as a result. Turnover went down between 2012 and 2014 with 27 percent. VBW director Maasse: “According to the Spanish Florist’s Authorities (AEFI) 23 percent of her members went bankrupt in these two years. A French VAT increase in the nineties was recalled within two years when it turned out that employment went down with 7 percent (11,000 jobs)”.

The entire report “Effects of a VAT increase from 6% to 9% and reduction of income tax for the turnover and the position of florists in the Netherlands can be found here (in Dutch).

source: VBW