Budget Provisions for 2014
The Romanian officials have finished the draft state budget for 2014. The document is to be debated by Parliament soon.
Corina Cristea, 14.11.2013, 13:58
The draft budget for 2014 has been approved by Romania’s government and is to be soon debated by Parliament. It is not a generous budget, the finance ministry announced, excise duties will increase and jobs will be frozen in the state sector, although there are special exceptions allowing employment in the state sector. The budget has been built on a deficit of 2.2% of the GDP and a 2.2% economic growth rate.
The government estimates that revenues to the state budget will increase by almost 5% following these measures. Most of the money will go to the Ministry of Regional Development and Public Administration, to the Environment, Finance, Agriculture and European Funds Ministries. The healthcare budget has also been increased and resident physicians will benefit from a small salary rise. Also beginner teachers will be better paid. The public finance minister, Daniel Chitoiu, pointed out that the tax on special buildings would be 1.5%, the state being able to collect around 500 million lei from this tax:
Daniel Chitoiu: “This tax on special buildings exists in all European states. The fiscal burden will not increase significantly. All electricity poles also produce other revenues besides those from the basic activity. Owner companies rent each pole for 50 euros per month to mobile telephony companies and advertising companies. Therefore these special constructions produce supplementary revenues besides their basic activity”.
The opposition is discontent with the way money was distributed and the former finance minister, Democrat Liberal Gheorghe Ialomitianu, says the budget for 2014 is a poverty budget. He told Radio Romania about his way of building the budget:
Gheorghe Ialomitianu: “I would have given money for investments in order to create jobs and I would have cut social contributions so that the business environment would have a positive response. The situation created by the current government’s measures is unprecedented after 1989, since all the representatives of the business environment are now considering leaving Romania.”
He criticized the fact that the budget was constructed based on increasing duties, taxes and excises, which could generate an increase in the price of products and utilities. According to the minister delegate for the budget, Liviu Voinea, the budget does not neglect investments, 6% of the GDP being allocated to them.
