The Ukrainian League of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs (ULIE) is forced to appeal to law enforcement agencies and the public due to a new incident of attempted blocking of its activities at its headquarters at 34 Khreshchatyk Street, Kyiv.
The personal belongings of the business union’s employees, as well as important working documents, keys for electronic signatures, forms and seals of the organization remain in the premises. This situation greatly complicates our activities and threatens to disrupt the international projects to restore Ukraine that we are involved in.
We remind you that a few months ago, the balance holder of the premises, the Office of Administrative Buildings of the Economic and Financial Department of the CMU Secretariat, decided in an ultimatum not to agree to the extension of the USPP office, which it has occupied for 32 years, arguing that government officials need the building. At the same time, the Cabinet of Ministers itself has announced a reduction in ministries and, accordingly, in their staffs, and the neighboring floors of the building on Khreshchatyk, with a total area of about 3,000 square meters, have not been used for years.
The ULIE seeks to resolve everything exclusively in the legal field. Therefore, court proceedings on this issue are ongoing, and the courts have not yet made a decision on this issue.
Instead, the balance holder, without waiting for a court decision, installed a metal structure worth about 400 thousand hryvnias – and this is in wartime, in conditions of unprecedented budget deficit – to simply prevent employees of the NGO from returning to their workplaces.
On the basis of the ULIE, the Anti-Crisis Headquarters for Economic Sustainability under Martial Law operates, where the problems of the wartime economy are discussed, and the meetings are attended by representatives of the parliament, government officials, business organizations, the National Academy of Sciences and others. The headquarters’ recommendations are taken into account in the decisions of the National Security and Defense Council and the Government, as well as in draft laws of the Verkhovna Rada. For example, a recent meeting of the Anti-Crisis Center was devoted to the issues of reservation and energy. Our efforts have resulted in progress in the electronic booking of specialists, and before that, in the ability to book all 100% of employees of defense companies, etc. Proposals on energy are expected to be taken into account in the NSDC decisions. The day before, Anatoliy Kinakh, President of the ULIE, held a working meeting with Oleksandr Lytvynenko, Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council, where the parties agreed on joint actions in this area.
The Ukrainian League of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs is actively involved in the implementation of the President’s initiative “Made in Ukraine” and the joint Statement of the Government and business associations of Ukraine on deepening cooperation between the state and business.
Moreover, the ULIE regularly hosts meetings and working communications with international partners: a joint project with the ILO to stimulate women’s economic involvement through the development of a network of corporate children’s spaces, online conferences with related business organizations from the EU, the US, and other partner countries of Ukraine in the fight against the Russian aggressor, and meetings with ambassadors.
In Warsaw, the ULIE registered the Premier-U International Foundation, whose main goal is to restore Ukraine from the consequences of Russian aggression and attract investments from partner countries for these purposes. The supervisory board of the Foundation includes former prime ministers of Ukraine and Poland, and in the future – most EU countries.
Therefore, such unilateral actions by the balance holder (the CMU Office) threaten to disrupt important projects to restore Ukraine and call into question the state intentions of individual government officials involved in this case.
As long as the court proceedings are ongoing, it is unacceptable to impede the statutory activities of the USPP, an organization with a 32-year history, known and respected in business circles in Ukraine and the EU. This harms the European integration process, the image of the state, worsens business expectations and reduces the effectiveness of the government-entrepreneurs’ dialogue.
The unimpeded operation of the ULIE is critically important for supporting Ukrainian business and industry, especially under martial law.
We appeal to Ukrainian business associations, employers’ associations, public organizations and initiatives to support us as you have always done. We also appeal to the media to cover this incident. Your attention and support is important for ensuring transparency and justice in our country.
The war unleashed by the Russian Federation against Ukraine continues. The enemy is focusing its efforts on depleting Ukraine’s resources.
Now is the time for unity, joint work to increase the resilience and self-sufficiency of the national economy, development of Ukrainian production, and thus further strengthening of our defense capabilities.
For more details, please visit the official website of the ULIE (uspp.ua).
The background of the issue is here.
The Ukrainian League of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs (ULIE) has sent an official letter to the Minister of the Cabinet of Ministers Oleh Nemchinov and the leadership of the Administrative Buildings Department of the Economic and Financial Department of the Cabinet Secretariat, stating that it is impossible to fulfill their demand to vacate the office in downtown Kyiv on Khreshchatyk, which the union has occupied for 32 years, by March 10.
“We consider unacceptable any unilateral restrictive steps taken by representatives of the department that will block the activities of the ULIE and its partners – national associations of industrialists, entrepreneurs and employers, members of the Anti-Crisis Headquarters for Economic Sustainability under martial law, which are directly related to the implementation of the initiatives initiated by the President of Ukraine and the Cabinet of Ministers, in particular, “Made in Ukraine,” the ULIE said on Monday.
The union told Interfax-Ukraine that the Cabinet of Ministers’ Secretariat had decided not to extend the UUIE’s location on Khreshchatyk, even on a lease basis. The ULIE claims that, nevertheless, the first floors of the building are occupied by commercial structures with which lease agreements have been concluded.
Among the arguments for the impossibility of fulfilling the demand of March 4 to vacate the occupied premises at 34 Khreshchatyk Street by March 10, the ULIE cites the March 12 meeting of the Anti-Crisis Headquarters for Economic Sustainability under Martial Law with the participation of, among others, representatives of the Cabinet of Ministers, the Verkhovna Rada and the National Security and Defense Council.
“Also in March of this year, the ULIE is planning a number of international events to attract expert assistance and investment resources from foreign partners to support the economic recovery of Ukraine,” the union adds.
In a letter signed by its chairman, former Prime Minister Anatoliy Kinakh, the ULIE emphasizes that it guarantees reimbursement to the balance sheet holder for the costs of maintaining the premises it uses and the utilities actually provided, as it has already informed government agencies.
It is noted that as of March 11, by order of the Secretariat of the Cabinet of Ministers, an attempt has already been made to prevent USPP employees from getting to their workplaces, and there is no electricity and Internet connection in part of the office.
It is noted that several dozen business associations, including the Ukrainian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Federation of Employers, the Federation of Trade Unions, Ukrlegprom, the Union of Chemists, Ukrmashbud, the Construction Chamber, Ukrmetallurgprom, as well as the second president of Ukraine Leonid Kuchma, who once headed the union, and Viktor Yushchenko, who later replaced him as head of the country, have already spoken out in support of the USPP.
An increase in the excise tax on heated tobacco products by 200% from April 1 this year and its further growth by 30% (up to 320% in total) in 2022-2025 – such a compromise solution will allow avoiding too sharp price jumps and will provide more tax revenues than the alternative “shock” scenario, according to the Ukrainian League of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs (ULIE).
As reported on the union’s website on Monday, the business supports relevant bill No. 4278, which provides for such a procedure for increasing the excise tax. At the same time, the organization believes that this approach, among other things, will save jobs in companies, and the legal market, without reducing tax revenues to the budgets of various levels.
According to the business league, the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Finance, Tax and Customs Policy, when considering bill No. 4278, supported an increase in the excise tax on heated tobacco products by 200% in 2021 and a subsequent annual increase by 30% in 2022-2025.
The ULIE referred in a press release to the data of the Institute for Economics and Forecasting of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, according to which a gradual increase in excise tax rates on heated tobacco products within five years will provide UAH 18.7 billion more tax revenues than the alternative “shock” scenario with an increase in excise tax immediately in 4.2 times this year.
At the same time, the ULIE clarified that under the model of a gradual increase in excise tax, Philip Morris Ukraine tobacco company guaranteed the payment of more than UAH 11 billion of excise tax on heated tobacco products to the state budget of Ukraine during 2021-2022.
The Ukrainian League of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs said that legislative amendments affecting the consumer basket should correlate with the purchasing power of consumers, which will ultimately be affected by the rise in prices for products. “Otherwise, this situation will stimulate smuggling and the illegal sector,” the business league said.
As reported, on January 16, 2020, the Verkhovna Rada adopted law No. 1210, which introduced amendments to the Tax Code of Ukraine, increasing the excise tax rate on heated tobacco products by 4 times from January 1, 2021. Also, a separate product subgroup is introduced for heated tobacco products.
