Pacific Orange Weekly News Archive

Saint Victoria, Pacific Orange
In a move designed to discourage the Federal Reserve Bank from raising interest rates, the government has today announced the increase of all Pacific Orange tax rates from 28% to 30%. The Opposition leader Alexander Goldmeyer has slammed the government's decision as yet another election campaign promise broken. "This Labour government has yet again proven itself unable amongst other things at handling the nation's economic matters. Mr Phanomyong promised to voters in January that he would not raise taxes yet here he is doing the contrary."

The government has swept aside these accusations as mere political talk. "This is purely a pragmatic decision undertaken by the government to protect the financial considerations of the people," the Chancellor of the Exchequer said today, "Had Mr Goldmeyer or any other person been placed in the situation, they would have down likewise." Despite whatever economic arguments the government has put forth, the tax increase, following a string of increases in government taxation, is unlikely to go down well with voters in the mid term federal elections with strong negative reactions being voiced by Pacific Orange' commercial and business sector.

Already, the latest two party preferred opinion polls are showing Labour down by 4 points and the Nationalist Party up by 3 points; thereby narrowing the gap by 7 points to make it 48-43. But the Pan Red Coalition's primary support in the Legislative Assembly has only decreased by 2% and remains steady in the Senate. Whether this decision will cost President Phanomyong the ability to implement his Greater Society program thus remains to be seen. Nevertheless, most observers are calling this a decision the government shouldn't have chosen to take.