President, parliamentary parties met at Cotroceni Palace on price rise issue

Romania’s President Traian Basescu yesterday invited the parliamentary political parties to discuss price increases for energy and foodstuff. “Foodstuff and electricity price rises reported at the European level particularly influence the people of less developed EU member states, Romania included,” President Traian Basescu stated in the beginning of the talks.

“As you have seen when reading the conclusions of the latest European Council meeting, one of the main conclusions was that we have structural problems, at a European level,” the President told the delegates. Mr. Basescu asked the politicians to responsibly act when dealing with providing solutions aimed to ease the social impact of growing prices. He also added that the EU member states show restrain in adopting demagogic and populist solutions.

The conclusion of the talks was that the Government will have to come up with a set of actions to help the most vulnerable social categories to cope with the prices increase in food and utilities: natural gas, electricity, thermal power. Parties also argue that Romania needs a coherent energy strategy, in order to reduce its dependence on massive imports, by means of saving energy (e.g. through the thermo-insulation of buildings, etc.) and by means of developing renewable energy resources. Parties also agreed that agriculture needs more support, in order for Romania to turn from a farm product importer into an exporter.

PD-L: Actions to help vulnerable social categories

The Democratic-Liberal Party (PD-L) President Emil Boc stated after the consultations that, further to the proposals made by political parties, the conclusion was reached that the Government must come up with a set of measures for the underprivileged categories, which should be presented to political parties.

The PD-L leader stated that, through concrete measures, his party will try to support those vulnerable social categories, which will most likely be affected by the rise in electricity and natural gas prices. The actions requested by PD-L include the increase of the minimal guaranteed income, so as to make up for the negative effects of the food price increase, the granting of electricity and heating aid to vulnerable social categories, the increase of the whole-economy minimum wages, an increase in pension benefits and the award of direct aid to the low-income categories.

PSD suggests changes in gas, electricity supply structure

The Social-Democrat Party (PSD) and the Conservative Party (PC) presented to the Head of State a “National Pact for Energy and Food,” with 10 proposition, one of the most important of which has to do with changes in the structure of electricity and natural gas supplies to households. The authors suggest that a larger share of the domestically-produced natural gas and electricity should be supplied to households, as these products are cheaper than the imported ones.

The two parties also requested an increase of the minimum wages by the end of this year, modifications in the pension taxation basis, reduction of the excises on diesel, direct payment of RON 1,500 to each farmer, etc. PSD Vice-President Ilie Sarbu also urged a review of relations with the Russian Federation, from which Romania imports most of the natural gas, and adoption of more pragmatic criteria as regards the relationship between the two states.

UDMR: Economizing, the best prices cut-offs

The Ethnic Hungarians’ Democratic Union (UDMR) MP Erdely Istvan has stated in turn that UDMR supports the idea of creating an aid system that would cover the difference between the foodstuff price hike and the family budgets. ‘However this difference would not be considered a source of income,’ Istvan stated. ‘In the energy domain we consider that the best method to reduce the price is to economize, so we propose the drawing up of programs to cutback the thermal energy use, by financing or co-financing thermal rehabilitation works,’ the UDMR MP added.

PRM: “No solidarity with those that robbed this country”

“In principle I agree with a national solidarity, solidarity with the needy people of this country, but what solidarity could the ‘Greater Romania’ Party (PRM) have with those that robbed this country?” Corneliu Vadim Tudor stated at the end of the Cotroceni meeting. “PRM proposed and will propose: sacking the ‘Romanian – Magyar Government’ and put a national unity government in place,” the PRM hard-line nationalist president stated. He also asked for the cancellation of Petrom’s and BNR’s ‘fraudulent privatisations’, privatisations of what he dubbed ‘the crown jewels’, for the creation of a national union government, for the cancellation of the flat tax ‘that has caused annual damages of EUR 1 bln’ and for the elaboration of a national renewal strategy for agriculture and for rural development.

PNL: “The Government responsibly tackles the fight against inflation”

The National Liberals (PNL), represented during the consultations by the Minister of Economy and Finances Varujan Vosganian and the Labor Minister Paul Pacuraru, opined that the political parties should reconsider their proposals, taking into account the need to maintain the annual inflation target. Labelling most of the proposals as ‘contradictory and populist,’ Vosganian has stated that the Government aims to control the inflation and the budget deficit and consequently to avoid any side-slipping that would endanger those two targets. “The Government responsibly tackles the fight against inflation and wants to use the budget to stop it, not to fuel it,” Vosganian stated.

In his turn, the Labour Minister Paul Pacuraru mentioned that the Government intends to re-introduce the ‘minimal consumer basket’ in order to have a clear image on the population’s monthly needs.

PM ruled out minimum wages increase

Following a Cabinet meeting today, Romanian Prime Minister Tariceanu said the Government is ready to provide a social solidarity fund meant to help the poor in coping with bigger prices. On another hand, Mr. Tariceanu said he rules out a minimum wages increase – as the country’s economy failed to meet the inflation target so far and as the unions previously agreed upon increasing wages as long as the inflation stays low.

Romania Report