The Labour Minister, Rovana Plumb, on Tuesday asked the two co-chairpersons of the National Liberal Party (PNL) to withdraw the constitutionality objection they submitted to the Constitutional Court of Romanian (CCR) in referral to the state budget law and the law on social securities, for it could delay the coming into force of some very important social measures, informs Agerpres.
Rovana Plumb addressed an open letter to the Liberal co-chairpersons, Alina Gorghiu and Vasile Blaga, in which she asks them to withdraw the notification from the CCR.
‘On Sunday, December 21, the Romanian Parliament by a large majority voted for the state budget law and the social securities law. I want to show my regret over the National Liberal Party’s option to vote against these two laws, despite the fact that they contained such measures that are more than necessary for many categories of Romanian citizens, from retirees, doctors and teaching staff, to those who create jobs in our economy. Ms and Mr co-chairs of the PNL, I took act, after the vote in Parliament, of your party’s decision to notify the Constitutional Court about the budget law, so that, I want to ask you now to please behave responsibly and reconsider this decision. I ask you to please withdraw the constitutionality objection you submitted to the Constitutional Court,’ said the Labour Minister in her letter.
She also added that the objection raised against the budget law could delay the coming into force of some very important social measures, such as salary increases for various categories of personnel, but also the increase of the minimum pension, from 350 up to 450 lei, and that there are also strong worrying signals in the economy coming from those who are affected by the postponement of the entering into force of the budget law.
‘Moreover, and this is also important, there are major risks related to the co-financing of the projects sponsored through European funds, aimed at creating jobs for the youth [...],’ Rovana Plumb also said.
The parliamentary groups of PNL and PDL (Democratic Liberal Party) notified the Constitutional Court (CCR) about the unconstitutionality of the 2015 state budget law, adopted by Parliament on Sunday, Deputy Eugen Nicolaescu, who is also the Deputy Chairman of the Deputies Chamber’s Committee on budget-finance, stated on Monday.
PM’s adviser Socol: Challenging the budget law at the CCR is a reprehensible gesture, lacking logic
Challenging the budget draft law at the Constitutional Court of Romania (CCR) is a reprehensible gesture, and it lacks economic, social and political logic,” believes the Prime Minister’s advisor, Cristian Socol.
“The gesture of the opposition to challenge the state budget at the CCR shows the way the pure politicianism could win to economic, social and political reason. The intention to block the administrative functioning of Romania in January only to get a rather electoral gain shows the Romanians the lack of economic logic and vision as regards the economic priorities on 2015. To challenge a budget built on public policies which stimulates the economic growth with a view to raise jobs, foresees tax cuts (social insurance’s contributions’ cuts, VAT cuts in tourism, preservation of a smaller VAT for bread, maintain the non-taxed reinvested profit) and higher budget financing for education and health is a hard-to-understand lack of macro-economic strategy ,” Socol told Agerpres, on Tuesday.
He added that to question a budget which intends to increase co-financing for the European projects up to 6.3 billion euros means to deem non-priority the integral absorption of the European funds allocated to Romania for 2007-2013.
“To be against a budget which continues the fiscal consolidation and at the same time foresees an increase of the expenses for investments by 8.7 billion lei (plus 24 pct.) as against 2014, and increases of the education, health, infrastructure, defence and agriculture budgets is a nonsense with the packages of measures tabled by the Opposition for the stimulation of the economic growth in 2015″, the PM’s advisor concluded.
European Funds Minister Eugen Teodorovici warns that the Liberals action against the budget imperils the European funds absorption
European Funds Minister Eugen Teodorovici believes that the National Liberal Party (PNL) decision to contest with the Constitutional Court of Romania (CCR) the state budget law for 2015 imperils the Government’s capacity to allot starting January 1 the amount of 6.3 billion euros to co-funding, pointing out that Romania needs in the coming period as much stability as possible to maintain the good pace until now in the area of European funds absorption.
‘We have three programmes already approved by the European Commission, which represents a true performance for Romania and proves both to those who trusted our organisation capacity and to the skeptics that we are capable to continue to improve the process of absorbing EU funds. It would be a pity for this evolution, which is advantageous for Romania, to be imperiled because of the political war, which in 2015 has no electoral stake, so much the more that the budget has already been passed in a clear and overwhelming manner in Parliament, after a wide debate,’ Teodorovici points out on Tuesday in a open letter sent to Agerpres, addressed to PNL co-chairs Vasile Blaga and Alina Gorghiu.
According to the European Funds Minister, the Opposition step threatens to damage the good pace of absorption registered in the beginning of the year.
‘I insist on publicly reminding the representatives of the National Liberal Party that the current absorption rate for the 2007-2013 multiannual financial framework reached at present 46.24 per cent for 44,164 projects filed and 14,776 contracts signed. The value of the expense statements sent by the European Commission stands at 8.88 billion euros. Moreover, at the end of last week the European Commission adopted two 2014-2020 operational programmes for Romania, focused on increasing competitiveness and technical assistance in implementing European funds. The two programmes represent a total investment worth 1.54 billion euros in Romania’s real economy,’ Teodorovici mentions.