THERE is an interesting message on a receipt from a café in Kostrena. At the bottom of the receipt, the owner explained the prices.

"Consumption tax and the highest VAT in Europe are included in the price. VAT in Spain and Italy amounts to 10%, in Hungary 5%, in Greece 13%, and in France and Slovenia 6%. Let's elect those who will end this tax repression that only serves those in high places," writes the owner of the café.

In an interview with Morski.hr, Miro Juraj, the owner of the Mosquito bar in Kostrena, explained why he included this message in the receipt.

"I did it because many people do not understand facts. If VAT in other tourism-based countries with up to hundreds of millions of inhabitants amounts to the percentages I have mentioned in my message, why is Croatia different when we call ourselves a tourism-based country?"

Many bars and restaurants that were open while the tax on bar and restaurant services amounted to 13% became unprofitable when the tax was raised to 25%, and the owners had to sell them. The government only helped out hotel lobby groups by reducing the VAT on food services to 13%.

I want to encourage people to go and vote because the elections are the only opportunity we have to make a change. Everyone who complains that their coffee is expensive should keep in mind that every third employee is employed by the state and paid with our tax money," he concludes.