Radio România Internațional

Tag: 2017 budget

  • 3 February, 2017

    3 February, 2017

    Romania’s president Klaus
    Iohannis will address Parliament on the 7th of February on the
    subject of the government’s changes to criminal laws and the events sparked as
    a result. The president challenged the government’s move to the Constitutional
    Court invoking a legal conflict of a constitutional nature between the
    government, on the one hand, and the judiciary and Parliament, on the other.
    After the Superior Council of Magistracy and the General Prosecutor’s Office,
    the Ombudsman is now also contesting the government ordinance. On Tuesday
    night, the government passed a bill on prison pardon and issued an emergency
    ordinance to amend the criminal codes. Tens of thousands of people again took
    to the streets yesterday for the third day in a row to protest against the
    government’s decree that would partly decriminalise some forms of corruption.
    Despite unanimous condemnation by the country’s judicial institutions, the
    Social Democratic government has decided to go ahead with the changes. The
    Social Democratic Party yesterday reaffirmed its support for prime minister
    Sorin Grindeanu. The leader of the party Liviu Dragnea says a disinformation
    campaign is being waged on the subject and believes that any attempt to
    undermine the activity of the government is in fact an attempt to destabilise
    the rule of law.




    Migration and the future of the European Union after
    Brexit are analysed today in Malta at an informal meeting of the EU Council
    where Romania is represented by its president Klaus Iohannis. The 28 EU leaders
    are discussing in particular the migration from Libya and the central
    Mediterranean routes. The Council plans to address the migration crisis by
    tackling its causes, namely conflicts, political and economic instability,
    human rights violations and poverty. The first measure envisaged is putting an
    end to illegal migration. European leaders are also discussing ways to
    strengthen the Union’s external borders, a subject on which Romania has
    repeatedly insisted. The Council will also discuss the future management of borders
    through the use of new border control technologies.




    Parliament’s specialist committees are today debating the
    2017 budget bill, with finance minister Viorel Stefan expected to attend. This
    year’s budget is based on a 5.2% economic growth rate and a deficit of maximum
    3% and will allow Romania to comply with its commitments to allocate 2% of its
    GDP to the defence ministry. The government expects an inflation rate of under
    1.4% and an unemployment rate of 4.3%. In the opinion of the finance minister,
    the budget bill is based on real economic data, the government programme of the
    Social Democratic Party and public policies and national projects. It lays
    emphasis on education, healthcare, infrastructure and investment.




    A French soldier shot and wounded
    a man armed with a knife trying to enter the Louvre museum in central Paris.
    The man, who was carrying a rucksack, is said to have approached the soldiers
    guarding the museum security and pull out a knife, trying to attack them. The
    police say one soldier was wounded, while the assailant is in serious
    condition. A police spokesman said the man shouted Allahu
    Akbar, while the head of the Paris police says he was probably trying to
    commit a terrorist attack.




    The Romanian
    tennis player Adrian Ungur, no. 313 in the ATP ranking, today faces Ilya Ivashka (175 ATP) in Minsk in the Belarus-Romania
    opener as part of the Euro-Africa Davis Cup Group 1. In the second match today,
    Marius Copil, no. 129 in the world, plays against Egor Gerasimov (341 ATP). In
    the doubles, Horia Tecau and Nicolae Frunza on Saturday face Max Mirnyiand Egor
    Gerasimov. In the final single matches on Sunday, Romania’s Marius Copil faces
    Ilya Ivashka, while Adrian Ungur plays against Egor Gerasimov. In other news
    from tennis, Romania’s highest ranked player in the women’s ranking, world no.
    4 Simona Halep, who was due to play Russia’s Natalia Vikhlyantseva in the
    quarterfinals, has withdrawn from the Saint Petersburg tournament worth more than 700,000
    dollars in prize money because of a knee injury.







  • February 2, 2017 UPDATE

    February 2, 2017 UPDATE


    EMERGENCY ORDINANCE Romanias president Klaus Iohannis announced on Thursday that he had sent a notification to the Constitutional Court concerning the emergency ordinance amending criminal law, which created a conflict between the Government, the judiciary and Parliament. The leader of the governing Social Democratic Party, Liviu Dragnea, has stated that the ordinance will not set the corrupt free and will not stop the trial in which he is accused of forgery. He has also stated that any attempt to undermine the activity of the Government formed by the Social Democratic Party and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats in Romania is an attempt at destabilizing the rule of law in Romania. In another move, Florin Jianu, the Minister for Business, Trade and Entrepreneurship resigned from Government. Also on Thursday, the National Anticorruption Directorate called on the Justice Ministry to provide the legal documentation regarding the drafting and issuing of the emergency ordinance that amends the criminal codes. The information was carried by a communiqué issued by the Ministry of Justice, in which the said ministry accuses the Anticorruption Directorate of interfering with the governments activity.



    PROTESTS President Klaus Iohannis has criticised the Interior Ministry for the way in which it acted on Wednesday night, when, during the peaceful protest rallies held in Bucharest against the Grindeanu ordinances, isolated groups attempted to instigate violence. According to the president, both the Interior Ministry and the Gendarmerie had been warned about potential incidents, aimed to compromise the peaceful protest. In response, the Interior Minister Carmen Dan has stated the ministry did not receive any such information concerning Wednesday nights protests. These are the most serious protests staged in Romania in the past 25 years, held against the Governments decision to amend the criminal codes under an emergency ordinance. Romanians living abroad have too protested against the governments decision.



    EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT The situation created by the Romanian Governments decision to amend criminal law under emergency ordinances was the subject of a heated debate in the European Parliament on Thursday. Romanian MEPs members of the European Peoples Party called for the withdrawal of the ordinance, while the representatives of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats and the Social-Democratic Party, claimed the protesters were trying to overthrow a legitimate Government. The European Commission has called on the Romanian Government to re-evaluate the ordinance. In turn, the Embassies of France, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, Canada and the United States in Bucharest have expressed their deep concern over the Governments actions, which they see as undermining Romanias progress regarding the rule of law and the fight against corruption in the last ten years.



    REACTIONS The Pro Democratia Association, one of the oldest and most respected NGOs in Romania, has expressed concern with respect to the rapid and serious degradation of democracy in Romania, also in connection with the concerted attack of some political forces against fundamental principles such as the rule of law and human rights. According to Pro Democratia, the systematic campaign against democracy gained momentum with the adoption of the controversial Government emergency ordinance modifying the criminal and criminal procedure codes, which seem to be aimed at preventing certain political leaders and their contributors from facing criminal justice. The Association calls on those responsible to stop all attacks against institutions, organizations and the principles of the rule of law and human rights and the immediate and unrestricted withdrawal of the emergency ordinance criticized by the general public.



    2017 STATE BUDGET The specialised budget-finance committees of the Romanian Parliament will convene in joint sessions on Saturday and Sunday to draw up the report on the draft state budget for 2017. On Monday, the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies will debate, also in joint session, the bills, and the final voting is to be held on Tuesday. The 2017 draft budget is built on a 5.2% economic growth rate and a deficit of maximum 3% of the GDP. The Government estimates a inflation rate standing under 1.4% and a 4.3% unemployment rate. According to the Finance Minister Viorel Stefan, special attention will be paid, in the coming period, to investments, health-care, education and infrastructure.



    TENNIS The best-rated Romanian tennis player, Simona Halep, no.4 in the WTA rankings, has qualified to the quarterfinals of the Sankt Petersburg tournament in Russia, totalling over 700,000 dollars in prize money. On Friday, Halep will take on Natalia Vikhlyantseva of Russia, who in the second round ousted her better-seeded co-national Daria Kasatkina. Halep is the tournaments no. 1 seed. In the womens doubles, also in the quarter finals, Irina Begu and Monica Niculescu will take on Daria Gavrilova of Australia and Kristina Mladenovic of France.




  • 28 January 2017, UPDATE

    28 January 2017, UPDATE

    2017 budget. The draft budget for 2017 will be discussed
    on Tuesday by the government after a meeting of the Country’s Supreme Defence
    Council called by president Klaus Iohannis on Friday to approve the draft
    budget of national security institutions proposed by the government. Prime
    minister Sorin Grindeanu explained that his cabinet’s wish was for the new
    budget to cover all measures contained in the governing programme and that the
    fact that certain institutions may receive less money does not threaten their
    activity. The 2017 budget is based on a 5.2% economic growth rate, while the
    budget deficit is estimated at 2.96% of the GDP.




    Merkel-Iohannis. German
    chancellor Angela Merkel on Friday called Romania’s president Klaus Iohannis to
    express her support for the continuation of the fight against corruption in
    Romania. She also voiced her concern about the possibility that certain actions
    may affect the country’s efforts to combat this phenomenon. President Iohannis
    assured the German chancellor that he was firmly committed to continuing the
    fight against corruption in Romania with a view to building a mature and solid
    democracy. The president said that, at regional level, Romania remains a
    reliable partner and one of the most important pillars of stability. He said
    that, in the context of complex crises at international level, Romanian-German
    cooperation has become very dynamic, both within the European Union and NATO, a
    trend that must continue. During their telephone conversation, the two leaders
    also spoke about the excellent stage of the special strategic relationship
    between their countries and the consolidation and deepening of bilateral
    political dialogue, as well as enhancing coordination on European matters.




    Prison pardon. The president of the Democratic Union of
    Ethnic Hungarians in Romania Kelemen Hunor said any change to the criminal and
    criminal procedure codes must be made in Parliament, in keeping with the
    decisions of the Constitutional Court, and not by government’s calling for a
    vote of confidence or by its issuing an emergency ordinance. Hunor said it was
    also Parliament that must decide in the matter of prison pardon and when such a
    measure should be made. The justice ministry will hold a public debate on
    Monday on the draft emergency ordinances on pardon and the amendment of the
    criminal and criminal procedure codes. The right-wing opposition, civil
    society, the main judicial institutions and magistrates organisations have
    described the proposals as ill-timed. The justice ministry says however that
    collective pardoning and certain changes to the criminal laws are necessary to
    ease prison overcrowding, something the European Court of Human Rights has
    criticised, and to comply with certain decisions of the Constitutional Court.
    The government has been accused of trying to lift the convictions of influential
    persons from politics and the administration.


    Trump immigration. A number of American civil rights
    groups, including the powerful American Civil Liberties Union, filed legal
    action on Saturday challenging an executive order by US president Donald Trump
    banning entry to the US of nationals of a number of Muslim-majority countries.
    On Friday, Trump announced a tougher legal framework for immigration and
    refugee admission to prevent what he called radical Islamic terrorists from
    entering the US. Trump banned the entry of Syrian refugees until further
    notice. He also halted the issuing of visas for the citizens of seven
    Muslim-majority countries, namely Iraq, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and
    Yemen, for three months. Rights groups
    have immediately condemned the
    measures. The United Nations has
    called on Trump to continue the US’s long tradition of protecting those who
    are fleeing conflict and persecution and not to distinguish on account of
    race, religion and nationality.

    Handball. CSM Bucharest, the European defending champion in women’s
    handball, drew 26-all at home against the Norwegian side Larvik HK in a
    Champions League group match on Friday. CSM will next face the Slovenian side RK Krim Mercator on the 4th
    of February in Ljubljana. The latter lost on Saturday to the Hungarian side ETO
    Gyor, the leader of the group with 8 points. Krim are in the second position
    with 6 points, followed by Larvik with 5, the Danish side FC Midtjlland with 4,
    CSM Bucharest with 3 points and another Danish side, Team Esbjerg, with 2
    points.

  • 28 January, 2017

    28 January, 2017

    Merkel-Iohannis. German
    chancellor Angela Merkel on Friday called Romania’s president Klaus Iohannis to
    express her support for the continuation of the fight against corruption in
    Romania. She also voiced her concern about the possibility that certain actions
    may affect the country’s efforts to combat this phenomenon. President Iohannis
    assured the German chancellor that he was firmly committed to continuing the
    fight against corruption in Romania with a view to building a mature and solid
    democracy. The president said that, at regional level, Romania remains a
    reliable partner and one of the most important pillars of stability. He said
    that, in the context of complex crises at international level, Romanian-German
    cooperation has become very dynamic, both within the European Union and NATO, a
    trend that must continue. During their telephone conversation, the two leaders
    also spoke about the excellent stage of the special strategic relationship
    between their countries and the consolidation and deepening of bilateral political
    dialogue, as well as enhancing coordination on European matters.




    2017 budget. The draft budget for 2017 will be discussed
    on Tuesday by the government after a meeting of the Country’s Supreme Defence
    Council called by president Klaus Iohannis on Friday to approve the draft
    budget of national security institutions proposed by the government. Initially,
    the latter said it would adopt the draft budget on Friday and submit it to
    Parliament for debate. Prime minister Sorin Grindeanu explained that his cabinet’s
    wish was for the new budget to cover all measures contained in the governing
    programme and that the fact that certain institutions may receive less money
    does not threaten their activity. The 2017 budget is based on a 5.2% economic
    growth rate, while the budget deficit is estimated at 2.96% of the GDP. The
    areas of transports, agriculture, healthcare and small and medium sized
    enterprises will receive the largest amount of funds. Education, energy,
    regional development, the home office, the foreign office, the president’s
    office, the two chambers of Parliament and the Foreign Intelligence Service are
    to receive less money than in 2016.




    Foreign workers quota. Romanian
    employers may hire this year 5,500 foreign nationals newly admitted to the
    labour market, according to a decision issued on Friday by the government in
    Bucharest. These are citizens of countries other than those part of the
    European Union and the European Economic Area or Switzerland and whose access
    to the labour market is regulated by agreements and treaties signed by Romania
    with other states. The government has also established the number and type of
    newly admitted foreign workers: 3,500 permanent workers, 200 seasonal workers,
    200 internship workers, 100 cross-border workers, 800 highly qualified workers
    and 700 posted workers. The number of newly admitted foreign workers in Romania
    is established every year by government decision. This ensures a control of
    foreign workers entering Romania and restricts the number of foreign posted workers
    whose social security contributions are paid in the country of origin.
    According to the government, the budget revenue resulting from the issuing of
    hiring and posting authorisations for newly admitted workers in Romania is
    estimated at 1.1 million euros.




    USA measures. US president Donald Trump on Friday announced a
    tougher legal framework for immigration and refugee admission to prevent what
    he called radical Islamic terrorists from entering the US. Trump has banned
    the entry of Syrian refugees until further notice. He also halted the issuing
    of visas for the citizens of seven Muslim-majority countries, namely Iraq,
    Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen, for three months. The federal
    programme for the admission of refugees of all nationalities from countries at
    war has been halted for four months. Rights
    groups have immediately condemned
    the measures. The United Nations has
    called on Trump to continue the US’s long tradition of protecting those who
    are fleeing conflict and persecution and not to distinguish on grounds of
    race, religion and nationality. The American Civil Liberties Union criticised
    the use of the words extreme vetting, saying it was a euphemism for discrimination
    against Muslims.




    Handball. CSM Bucharest, the European defending champion
    in women’s handball, drew 26-all at home against the Norwegian side Larvik HK
    in a Champions League group match on Friday. The winner of the European title
    in 2011, Larvik are now third in their group. The leaders of the group are the
    Hungarian side ETO Gyor and the Slovenian side Krim Ljubljana, with 6 points each, followed by Larvik with
    5 points, the Danish side FC Midtjlland with 4 points, CSM Bucharest with 3
    points and another Danish side, Team Esbjerg, with 2 points. CSM will next face
    Krim on the 4th of February in Ljubljana.

  • January 11, 2017 UPDATE

    January 11, 2017 UPDATE

    WEATHER – Over 150 trains were canceled on Wednesday due to extreme weather. Two major highways and many national roads have been temporarily shut down in the south and east. Authorities have also cut off traffic from neighboring Bulgaria at the Vama Veche crossing point. 11 flights taking off from Henri Coanda International Airport in Bucharest were cancelled. Black Sea ports were blocked for the night due to severe wind, opening for sailing later on.



    MEETING – Romanian president Klaus Iohannis said on Wednesday after meeting with Prime Minister Sorin Grindeanu and Finance Minister Viorel Stefan that he received information about the budget for 2017. The president wants a sustainable and robust budget, with a budget deficit below 3% and with 2% of the GDP allotted to defense. On the other hand, the President said that he would ratify the law by which the Chamber of Deputies amended the Fiscal Code. The law eliminates health insurance contributions for all pensioners and makes all pensions below 450 euros tax deductible. In turn, the Government decided to increase the salaries of actors and certain categories of artists by 50% starting February 1.



    ECONOMY – The Romanian economy will grow by 3.7% in 2017, by 3.4% in 2018, and by 3.2% in 2019, according to the latest World Bank report, which expects that the tally for 2016 will be a growth of 4.7%. The institution noted that the high level of growth last year was caused by the slash in the VAT, but will stabilize in 2017. Globally, the World Bank expects a moderate growth, around 2.7%. Advanced economies are expected to grow by 1.8% in 2017, from 1.6% in 2016, while emerging economies are expected to grow by 4.2% this year, from 3.4% last year.



    COOPERATION – The US Embassy in Bucharest has urged representatives of the Government, Parliament and the judicial system to cooperate in order to combat corruption. In a press statement issued on Wednesday, the Embassy expressed its willingness to cooperate with Prime Minister Sorin Grindeanu and members of his cabinet to develop even further the Strategic Partnership between Romania and the United States, which is based, among other things, on a firm commitment towards good governance and consolidating the rule of law. The US has firmly supported the efforts of President Klaus Iohannis and judicial institutions to enact the law, the release also reads. Recently, Ombudsman Victor Ciorbea has challenged the constitutionality of the law stipulating that only people without incompatibilities and criminal sentences can be members of the Government, while Justice Minister Florin Iordache has referred to the possibility of adopting an amnesty and pardon law. Both actions have been criticized by the president and anti-corruption prosecutors.



    TENNIS – The Romanian-American pair made of Monica Niculescu and Abigail Spears on Wednesday pulled out of the doubles event at the Australian Hobart tournament, an event with more than 225 thousand dollars prize money up for grabs. The two withdrew ahead of the quarterfinals fixture against Dutch – Czech pair made of Demi Schuurs and Renata Voracova. The two decided to pull out of competition because of Abigail Spears knee injury. Also in the womens doubles quarterfinals in Hobart, the Romanian Raluca Olaru and the Ukrainian Olga Savciuk wil face Ukrainian twins Ludmila and Nadia Kicenok. In Hobart, Niculescu will carry on in the womens singles, where in the quarterfinals on Thursday she will face Japans Risa Ozaki (100 WTA). (Tranlsated by V. Palcu)