Following initial controversy over education cuts outlined in Hacienda's April 21 memo, Chile's Treasury revealed the full scope: urging 22 ministries to eliminate 142 social programs and cut 260 others for $6 billion in savings in the 2027 budget. The proposal, tied to Finance Minister Jorge Quiroz's tax reform push emphasizing full employment as the ideal social policy, has drawn sharp criticism from scientists, unions, and opposition leaders.
The broader details of the Ministry of Finance's memos, sent after Minister Jorge Quiroz's Wednesday tax reform presentation—where he remarked, 'The best social policy, and hopefully one day the only one, is full employment'—propose discontinuing 142 programs worth 5.4 trillion pesos (~$6 billion), a figure matching President José Antonio Kast's campaign promise.
Impacted areas extend beyond the previously highlighted education programs (like School Feeding for 2 million children, Public Education Support Fund, and teacher scholarships) to include 25 health initiatives (e.g., Suicide Prevention, palliative care) and 11 science programs (e.g., Centers of Excellence in Research).
Criticism intensified: Astronomer José Maza warned Chile's R&D spending (0.36% GDP) would fall to 0.29%, below many African nations. The Nurses' Federation decried risks to public health. Opposition PS leader Paulina Vodanovic called it the 'National Destruction Plan'; PPD's Carolina Tohá labeled it an ideological 'paradigm shift.'
Minister Quiroz has reiterated—as clarified amid the education uproar—that the memos offer only 'programmatic orientations' with no final decisions, part of routine budget preparation.
