April 10, 2017

A bill on the unified pay scale for state sector employees has today been sent to Parliament for debate/ The Speaker of the Romanian Senate Calin Popescu-Tariceanu is meeting with the EC President Jean-Claude Juncker and the EU Commissioner for Justice

Ştefan Stoica, 10.04.2017, 13:52

UNIFIED PAY LAW — Romanian labour minister, Lia Olguta Vasilescu, has announced a bill on the unified pay scale for state sector employees will be sent today to Parliament, where changes can be brought- to the initial text, also by the trade unions. The Labour Ministry says the military and policemen will be the first to receive pay-rises, as of July 1. The other categories of state sector employees will receive pay-rises as of January 1, 2018. According to the bill, the president will get the highest salary, which will be the equivalent of 12 national minimum wages.

VISIT — The Speaker of the Romanian Senate, Calin Popescu-Tariceanu, is today meeting in Brussels with the European Commission President, Jean-Claude Juncker, and the EU Commissioner for Justice, Věra Jourová. The agenda of talks covers such issues as the future of the European Union, Brexit and the stage of monitoring Romania’s judicial system. Tariceanu has been constantly pleading for lifting the Cooperation and Verification Mechanism, CVM, imposed by the EU in 2007, when Romania joined the community bloc. Talks are held against the backdrop of sustained political efforts that Romania should make to support its national interest at Euroepan level, taking into consideration the important role played by Parliaments of the EU member states in shaping up the future of the Union — a communiqué issued by the Senate shows.

HOLY WEEK – Christian believers the world over, among which those in Romania, a country with a majority Orthodox population, today enter the Holy Week, ahead of Easter. Special masses are celebrated every evening, the most important ones being those given on Maundy Thursday and Good Friday. This year, Orthodox and Catholic believers will celebrate Easter at the same time.

CAIRO — Egyptian President, Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, has declared a state of emergency for a three month period all across the country, following the Coptic church bombings carried out on Palm Sunday, which left over 40 people dead. The Coptic Orthodox believers make up the largest Christian majority in the Middle East, accounting for 10% of the total number of 92 million Egyptians. The Islamic State terrorist group has claimed responsibility for the attacks. Pope Francis, who will pay a visit to Egypt in 20 days time, has prayed for the victims of the attacks and sent a message of condolence to the Patriarch of the Coptic Orthodox Church and to the whole Egyptian nation. The Romanian Foreign Ministry has firmly condemned the terrorist attacks in Egypt.

PARIS — The presidential election campaign has officially started in France today. The election will be held on April 23, with a run-off on 7 May 2017 if no candidate secures an absolute majority of the vote in the first round. According to the latest polls, the first four candidates credited with the highest chances in the French election are the representative of the far-right wing, Marine Le Pen, centrist Emmanuel Macron, the right wing candidate François Fillon and the candidate of the radical left-wing, Jean-Luc Mélenchon.

SUMMIT— Leaders of seven countries in southern Europe, France, Cyprus Greece, Italy, Portugal, Malta and Spain are today meeting in Madrid for talks on the future of the EU, post Brexit. The seven leaders are expected to take a common stand, which will later be shared with the other 20 EU member states. According to the correspondent of Radio Romania “News and Current Affairs” Channel, RRA, a final declaration should include two main ideas: negotiations should lead to a better relation between the Union and Great Britain and not to put in jeopardy people’s individual rights. The summit is held three weeks ahead of the European Council due on April 29, which is to define the main lines of negotiation to put Brexit into practice. The officials will also approach such issues as the situation in Syria, following the US missile strike, security and defence in the Mediterranean Sea area.