- Slovakia’s public finances are in a critical state. The general government deficit reached almost seven billion euros in 2024.
- Consolidation should serve as an impetus for reforms – thoughtful, targeted, and systemic.
- The next step is an expenditure review. For instance, the 13th pension in its universal form is unsustainable.
Slovakia must restore the health of its public finances. Yet instead of creativity and reforms, the state chooses convenient solutions that slow down the economy and fuel frustration.
Slovakia’s public finances are in a critical condition. The general government deficit reached nearly seven billion euros in 2024. As a share of gross domestic product, it rose from 5.19 percent in 2023 to 5.27 percent in 2024. Compared to other EU countries, Slovakia recorded the fourth-highest public finance deficit relative to GDP last year, after Romania, Poland, and France.
As a result of deficit-driven government spending, Slovakia’s total debt increased last year to 59.3 percent of GDP.
Consolidation is inevitable, but its current design is short-sighted. The government is taking the easiest path – raising taxes and levies. However, this stifles those who keep the economy afloat: employers, entrepreneurs, the self-employed, and workers. At the same time, the state itself continues to behave inefficiently and wastefully.
What is missing is vision, and above all, creativity. Consolidation should be an incentive for reforms – well-thought-out, targeted, and systemic. Instead of increasing the burden, the state should first look for savings within itself.
We have too many offices, agencies, and organizations that often duplicate each other’s functions. For example, in healthcare, NCZI, ÚVZ, and ÚDZS could be merged into one efficient institution. In the economy, instead of three agencies (SARIO, SBA, SIEA), we need one modern, results-oriented agency.
The state also operates many buildings in lucrative locations. Their sale would generate immediate revenue. Employees could work in shared administrative spaces outside city centers, which would reduce costs.
The next step is an expenditure review. For instance, the 13th pension in its universal form is unsustainable. Assistance must be targeted – focused on those who truly need it. Equally senseless is the transaction tax – it harms the business environment and brings no systemic solution.
Finally, we need a profound tax reform. A flat tax, unification of VAT rates, and elimination of exemptions would simplify the system and increase its fairness.
Consolidation must not be an accounting trick. It should be an opportunity. An opportunity to create a state that is smaller, more efficient, and fairer. A state that does not just look for new ways to collect more, but for ways to function better. Creative reforms, not passive cuts, are the path to restoring the health of public finances.
Author: Peter Blaškovits for HNonline.sk
