December 9, 2014 UPDATE
A roundup of domestic and international news
România Internațional, 09.12.2014, 13:58
The British PM David Cameron Tuesday congratulated Romania’s president-elect, Klaus Iohannis, for winning last month’s elections. In a letter posted on the Facebook account of the British Embassy in Romania, Cameron says that in his campaign Klaus Iohannis expressed commitment to tackle corruption, increase accountability and improve transparency. The UK is ready to support you in making these changes, reads the message to Klaus Iohannis. Britain’s PM also says he looks forward to working with the new president of Romania in the EU, to address shared challenges, including the crisis in Ukraine and the reform of the European Union.
European Commission experts are currently in Bucharest to assess the progress made by Romania in the field of judiciary. Topics like fighting corruption, lifting immunity and the legal framework regarding incompatibilities will be discussed. The next report under the Cooperation and Verification Mechanism will be made public in January or February next year. On December 9th, on the occasion of the International Anti-Corruption Day, the American, Dutch and British embassies in Romania conveyed a joint message of encouragement, mentioning Romania’s progress during the country’s 25 years of democracy. Its signatories also say Romanians should get more involved in the country’s social and political life to consolidate the rule of law.
The Romanian Government and the IMF, World Bank and European Commission experts Tuesday reached an agreement on next year’s budget. According to Prime Minister Victor Ponta, a budget deficit of 1.83% of the GDP has been agreed on. Victor Ponta has given assurances that there will be no additional taxes or duties in 2015. Moreover, measures that are already in force, such as those related to economic development and social justice, have been included in the budget. The economic growth forecast for next year is 2.5%, the same level in 2014. Based on Tuesday’s agreement, the final version of the budget bill will be drawn up, so that on December 21 the Parliament should vote on it, PM Ponta has said. The international lenders’ delegation will return to Romania in January.
Romania’s Constitutional Court Tuesday decided to resume on December 16th the debates on some provisions concerning the local elected officials’ incompatibility with the membership of the boards of companies in their regions. The issue has been raised by the mayor of the Tuzla village, in Constanta County, who says a law article regarding transparency in holding public positions and punishing corruption comes against the Constitution. Based on this article, the president-elect Klaus Iohannis was found incompatible by the National Integrity Agency while he was the mayor of Sibiu. The High Court of Cassation and Justice will deliver a ruling in this case. Under the law, if a person is found incompatible, that person is banned from holding any public positions for the following three years.
