The plan was presented to Finance Minister Dušan Mramor as he attended a management board session of the Manager Association on Thursday.

The country's leading association of managers argues that income tax rates should be adjusted to GDP, which would allow rates to be cut as growth picks up.

This will help make Slovenia's business environment more competitive, the association argues.

Mramor agreed that excessive taxation of higher middle income earners was a problem, especially in the segment of 1.6-times the average wage and above.

This segment represents staff key to innovation and development, including engineers and highly-qualified professionals, the managers say.

A five-year plan would allow the Finance Ministry to make concrete pledges to business to reduce income tax rates as GDP picks up, the association said.

The meeting comes after the Finance Ministry presented last week tweaks to the personal income tax brackets that would slightly reduce the burden on the higher middle income group. Calculations put the annual cut in income tax for this group at EUR 200.

This was only days after the ministry had scrapped a plan for tax relief on annual performance bonuses which would also have halved company tax breaks on investment in research and development. The idea was criticised by both business and trade unions.

The Manager Association told Mramor at Thursday's meeting that breaks on investment in R&D needed to stay.