Slovakian Finance Minister Ivan Miklos said that tax reform in Slovakia provided a transparent system that was simple and attractive for investors. He was speaking to delegates at a conference on economic reforms in Europe that began in Bratislava on Thursday.

Miklos' view was shared by Jeffrey Owens, head of the OECD tax policy centre, who added that the system was fair and non-discriminatory.

According to Heritage Foundation USA tax-policy expert Daniel Mitchell, tax reforms should also embrace social principles. He said tax reform was important for countries in transformation as a tool for attracting foreign investments, adding that a flat tax with a rate below 20% was the ideal.

At the beginning of 2004, Slovakia introduced flat 19% rates for income tax, corporate tax, and value-added tax. Mitchell said Central and East European countries were changing history by tax policies aimed at cranking up economic growth.

The conference "Economic Reforms for Europe" was attended by the finance ministers of six countries and representatives of the European Commission and World Bank.

(NewsBase 22.iii.04)