Radio România Internațional

Tag: charges

  • May 24, 2024 UPDATE

    May 24, 2024 UPDATE

    Salaries – Gross minimum wages will be raised to roughly 740 Euros as of July 1, and the facility granted to employers, under which 40 Euros of employees’ salaries are tax free will stay in place until the end of the year, the Romanian PM Marcel Ciolacu announced on Thursday, after a meeting of the three-party council comprising government, employers’ union and trade union officials. On the other hand, the government has increased the financial assistance for people with disabilities. As of July 1, the allowance for an adult with disabilities will be 105 Euros, and the one for a child with severe disabilities will be 92 Euros. According to official data, some 390,000 people will benefit from the increase. The government has also approved state aid for the national airline, Tarom, which the transport minister Sorin Grindeanu says is a major step for saving the company.

     

    Judiciary – The former chief operative of the Romanian Intelligence Service (SRI), Florian Coldea, was placed by the National Anti-Corruption Directorate under court supervision on bail. The same measure has been ordered with respect to ret. gen. Dumitru Dumbravă, the former head of the Service’s judicial service, and to the lawyer Doru Trăilă. The 3 are charged with influence peddling and money laundering, and are probed into following a complaint filed by the businessman Cătălin Hideg, who was sentenced to 4 years in prison in a European Public Prosecutor’s Office investigation into frauds involving EU funds. The businessman claims that Coldea and Dumbravă had asked him to pay 600,000 Euros using the lawyer Doru Trăilă as a go-between, in exchange for a suspended sentence in court.

     

    Drone – The first Romanian drone is going to be produced at the Carfil factory, in Braşov, in central Romania, a subsidiary of ROMARM S.A. National Company. A first step in this direction was taken on Friday, at the “Black Sea Defense and Aerospace” international exhibition, following the signing of a strategic agreement with the American manufacturer of military and civil drones, Periscope Aviation. The Romanian Economy Minister, Radu Oprea, said that the agreement is a first for the Romanian defense industry, being the first strategic partnership of a domestic company in the field of construction of military and civilian drone devices. He added that two other agreements related to the research activity in the field were also signed. The participants in the “Black Sea Defense and Aerospace” exhibition, an event that takes place in Bucharest, said that the objective of the agreement is the mass production of a 100% Romanian drone, with variants intended for both defense and civil domains, such as agriculture.

     

    Treason – A Romanian citizen was placed under preventive arrest for treason. He is accused of informing the Russian Embassy in Bucharest about NATO military objectives in Romania. The prosecutors of the Directorate for Investigating Organized Crime and Terrorism DIICOT reported that, as early as 2022, the Romanian supervised the military objectives near the city of Tulcea, in the southeast of the country, gathered military information and took photographs of combat equipment and its movement in the border area with Ukraine, which he sent to diplomats from the Russian diplomatic representation in Bucharest. DIICOT specified that, following house searches, several pieces of evidence were identified and seized. A Russian diplomat from Bucharest was expelled, on the grounds that he would have carried out activities that run counter to the provisions of the 1961 Vienna Convention.

     

    Tennis – The Romanian tennis players Sorana Cîrstea, Ana Bogdan, Jaqueline Cristian and Irina Begu found out their opponents in the first round of the tournament at Roland Garros, the second Grand Slam tournament of the year, following the drawing of lots held on Thursday in Paris. Sorana Cîrstea, seed number 28, will debut against the Russian Ana Blinkova, whom she defeated in 2020, in Dubai. Ana Bogdan will take on the French Elsa Jacquemot in their first match in the professional circuit. In turn, Jaqueline Cristian will have a tough match against the Latvian Jelena Ostapenko, world number 10. Jaqueline Cristian won in 2021, in the round of 16 in St. Petersburg, her only match played so far against the 2016 Roland Garros champion. And Irina Begu will meet, in the first round, an opponent from the qualifications. (LS)

     

  • Corruption during the pandemic?

    Corruption during the pandemic?

    The years 2020 and 2021, the first
    and most difficult of the Covid-19 pandemic, involved huge budget expenses in
    the medical field without which the hospitals couldn’t have coped with the waves
    of infections.


    However, some public procurement procedures
    at that time have raised suspicions, something not unusual in a country where
    contracts with the state are the most rewarding. Anti-corruption prosecutors
    have kicked off a series of investigations, which have revealed the involvement
    of several celebrities in Romania. The National Anti-corruption Directorate,
    known in Romania as the DNA, has detained, among others, the former selector of
    the Romanian national football side, Victor Piturca, and Gabriel Ţuţu, director
    of Romarm, the main company specialized in the production and export of
    military gear, in a file on the purchase of some production lines, which were
    not up to the production standards, and the selling of masks to the Ministry of
    Defence during the pandemic.




    One of the companies involved in
    these transactions allegedly belong to Alex Piturca, the son of the former
    football star, who has also been accused of using his influence in order to
    ease his son’s access to the contracts. Gabriel Ţuţu has been facing charges of
    abuse of office with aggravating circumstances, influence peddling and forgery.
    According to prosecutors, against the Covid-19 pandemic between March 2020 and
    September 2021, Gabriel Ţuţu, as director general of Romarm, would have
    concluded with a series of companies, including one belonging to the other
    person presently under investigation, two public procurement contracts that eventually
    proved to be disadvantageous for the company he was leading. The contracts were
    for buying of seven pieces of equipment used in the production of masks, but the
    machines purchased failed to meet the production standards.




    The transactions concluded eventually
    resulted in a prejudice of 1.7 million euros for the state-owned company Romarm.
    According to prosecutors, Ţuţu would have asked the companies involved in the
    aforementioned procurement transactions to conclude consultancy contracts with
    one of his friends, who wasn’t actually involved in the real trade activities
    under the aforementioned contract.




    The suspect insinuated that he had
    influence over Defence Ministry employees and was able to influence their
    granting of contracts. Ţuţu has allegedly received the sum of 10 thousand Euros through a
    middleman. We recall that selector Piturca had already received a one-year
    suspended prison sentence for perjury. Piturca is the goal-getter of the
    legendary football side Steaua Bucharest with which he won back in late 80s the
    European Champions Cup and Europe’s Supercup. He was also a reputed football
    coach whose prize closet includes numerous trophies he won with the clubs he
    coached and had a considerable hand in the qualification of the Romanian
    national squad for two major European tournaments.


    (bill)

  • Fiscal Code Amendments

    Fiscal Code Amendments


    In times of crisis, taxes and charges should not be raised. This is a rule often mentioned by economic analysts and politicians.



    These days however, burdened by a two-digit inflation rate prompted by skyrocketing energy and natural gas prices, Romanians are finding it increasingly hard to cope. And they fear they will be unable to pay their bills this coming winter. Under these circumstances, additional taxes and charges only manage to bring people down even more.



    Asked recently about the amendments to the Fiscal Code that are taking effect on August 1, the president Klaus Iohannis said they do not introduce new taxes, but that they address situations that had not been properly regulated before. More precisely, this is about taxes introduced in other circumstances, perhaps without proper discussion or analysis, and it is now necessary to revisit them, to make things more transparent and fair, and thus to ensure better collection of state budget revenues. Better collection means less tax evasion, president Iohannis argued.



    That said, following the decisions made recently by the coalition government made up of the National Liberal Party, Social Democratic Party and the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians in Romania, as of August 1 tobacco products will be more expensive, ceilings for certain tax exemptions will be lower and the tax on gambling gains will be higher.



    To go into more detail, as of Monday, whether they smoke classical or electronic cigarettes, Romanians will pay more, as the tobacco excise duty is raised. The decision, the authorities say, was made in order to avoid an infringement procedure against Romania for the inadequate transposition of EU legislation in this respect.



    The prices of alcoholic beverages also go up. According to the finance minister Adrian Câciu, the excise duties for alcohol had not been updated since 2015.



    As for gambling gains, a higher tax will be levied, ranging between 3% and 40%.



    Changes are also operated as regards salaries in the construction industry, agriculture and the food industry, where the ceiling for certain tax rebates will be lowered from EUR 6,000 to EUR 2,000 per month.



    Also beginning on August 1, for a part-time employment contract, employers will have to pay taxes corresponding to a full minimum salary, which triggers concerns that many small companies might be forced out of business or resort to illegal employment.



    Even more changes to the Fiscal Code will take effect on January 1, 2023. For example, in the hospitality industry VAT will be raised from 5 to 9%, while the VAT for non-alcoholic beer and for sugary drinks will be raised to 19%. Property taxes will also be calculated on a new methodology. (AMP)


  • October 23, 2020 UPDATE

    October 23, 2020 UPDATE

    COVID-19 A new record-high number of new SARS-CoV-2
    cases in 24 hours in Romania, 5,028 out of 35,351 tests, was reported on
    Friday. So far, 201,032 people have tested positive for the virus, and 144,429
    of them have recovered. The Strategic Communication Group also announced that
    another 82 people died, taking the death toll to 6,245. A total of 10,427
    COVID-19 patients are currently hospitalised, 782 of them in intensive care-the
    largest number so far. Of the Romanians living abroad, 6,851 have so far
    tested positive, and the number of deaths remains 126, the authorities also
    announced.


    PANDEMIC Global coronavirus cases are nearing 42 million, while the number
    of fatalities has passed 1.14 million, according to Worldometers.info. Europe
    is seeing a large number of infections in the second wave. Spain has passed 1
    million cases. Ireland has seen over 2,000 daily cases and its government has
    imposed strict measures. The UK has also reported its highest number of daily
    cases, 27,000. Germany has also seen a record number of new 11,000 infections.
    Poland’s PM announced on Friday that the entire country would be classified as
    COVID red zone, with restaurants and primary schools partly closed down. The
    Warsaw National Stadium will be converted into a temporary field hospital and
    similar facilities will be arranged elsewhere in the country, after over 13,600
    new cases were reported in the last 24 hours. On Friday Slovakia initiated a
    3-week mass testing programme. Belgium and Czech Republic have the highest
    number of infections per number of inhabitants. Beginning on Saturday, Greece
    will impose travel restrictions in Athens, Thessaloniki and other badly hit areas.
    France has extended its night curfew imposed in the main cities to most of the
    country, beginning on Saturday.


    MOBILITY On Friday the government of Romania challenged several provisions
    in the EU Mobility Package I at the Court of Justice of the EU. Bucharest views
    these provisions as having a negative impact on the domestic market and
    affecting competitiveness of commodity transport in the Union. The move concerns,
    among other things, the ban drivers on taking their compulsory weekly rest
    hours on board of vehicles, the obligation for drivers to return to the
    employer’s office or to their place of residence on a regular basis, and the
    obligation to return vehicles to a company office within 8 weeks from
    departure. The claim submitted to the Court of Justice of the EU follows
    repeated efforts by the Romanian authorities against the restrictive and
    disproportionate nature of these provisions in the Mobility Package I, the
    Romanian Foreign Ministry said. Romania voted against the 3 regulations,
    alongside 8 other EU member states (Bulgaria, Cyprus, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia,
    Lithuania, Malta and Poland).


    VISIT Romania’s PM Ludovic Orban will be on an official visit to
    France on Monday and Tuesday. According to the Romanian Government, Ludovic
    Orban will have meetings with his French counterpart Jean Castex, with the
    speakers of the National Assembly, Richard Ferrand, and the Senate, Gerard
    Larcher, and with the leader of the centre-right party ‘Les Republicains’,
    Christian Jacob. The Romanian PM will also take part in a meeting of the
    Council of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development. The visit
    also includes a meeting with members of the Romanian community in France.


    CORRUPTION The Liberal George Scripcaru, the outgoing
    mayor of Braşov in central Romania, has been charged with blackmail and is
    under judicial supervision. According to the National Anti-Corruption
    Directorate, while running for a new seat he threatened to cause problems to an
    advertising company unless it posted his election ads on public transport buses
    in the city. On September 27, Scripcaru lost the election to Allen Coliban
    (Save Romania Union). Meanwhile, 2 former mayors of the Black Sea port city of Constanţa,
    Decebal Făgădău and Radu Mazăre, both from the Social Democratic Party, have
    been indicted in a new corruption case. They are accused of having unlawfully authorised
    the construction of a luxury building on a beach.


    NATO The Romanian defence minister Nicolae Ciucă
    took part on Friday in a conference call of NATO defence ministers. The online
    meeting focused on ongoing Allied missions and operations, with a focus on
    those in Iraq and Afghanistan. Nicolae Ciucă reiterated Romania’s commitment to
    NATO missions, in a flexibly planned contribution that enables its
    reconfiguring in line to future Allied decisions and the dynamic of specific
    operational needs.


    FOOTBALL The Romanian football champions CFR Cluj on Thursday night defeated the
    Bulgarian side CSKA Sofia 2-nil in their opening Europa League Group A match.
    In the same group, the Italian side AS Rome defeated the Swiss side BSC Young
    Boys 2-1. Next week, AS Rome will be playing CSKA Sofia and CFR will be playing
    BSC Young Boys. Eliminated from the Champions League in the preliminary
    matches, CFR are the only Romanian side in the European competitions this year.
    (translated by: A.M. Popescu)

  • September 24, 2020 UPDATE

    September 24, 2020 UPDATE

    COVID-19 Following tests conducted at national level, 1,639 new cases of SARS-CoV-2 infection have been reported in Romania as against the previous reporting. 41 people died taking the death toll to 4,591. 506 persons infected with the new coronavirus are in ICUs. The health minister Nelu Tataru announced that 103 million face masks have been distributed across the country for the disadvantaged. He added that he did not expect a new state of emergency to be declared, which would force people to isolate themselves in their homes, and urged people to observe the rules for preventing the spread of the new coronavirus. Minister Tataru warned that if people failed to observe the rules the number of cases of infection would definitely grow.



    PANDEMIC There are more than 32 million cases of SARS-CoV-2 infection around the world, with 980,000 people having been killed by the virus, according to worldometers.info. In France, the daily rise in the number of infections has brought restrictions back. The health minister Olivier Véran says the situation has worsened in the past two weeks, the spread of the virus being more intense in big urban agglomerations. Marseille and its metropolitan area are currently on high alert and as of Monday firm restrictions have been implemented for at least 2 weeks: bars, restaurants and cafes as well as other public areas were closed, with several exceptions, and most people returned to working from home. In Spain, doctors are preparing for protests after asking the government for many months, to no avail, to adopt further measures and allot more resources to avoid the collapse of the public health system, under extreme pressure due to the coronavirus pandemic. In Israel the coronavirus ministerial committee considers necessary a total lockdown starting on Friday, due to the big number of infections.



    CEI The Romanian foreign minister Bogdan Aurescu Thursday attended an online meeting of the Central European Initiative, hosted by Montenegro, the acting president. Bogdan Aurescu pointed out that the Covid-19 pandemic can only be overcome through international solidarity. According to a news release issued by the Romanian Foreign Ministry, Aurescu emphasised Romanias contribution to fighting the pandemic, including the measures benefitting the Republic of Moldova, including the allocation of funds, medical teams and medical equipment, or the hosting of the RescEU strategic medical equipment reserve benefiting countries in the Western Balkans, among others. The Central European Initiative is a political platform that helps connect EU neighbouring countries to the values and standards of the Union. Romania joined the CEI, which comprises 17 countries, of which 9 are EU members, on June 1, 1996.



    CORRUPTION Criminal prosecution was initiated on Thursday against the chief of the Romanian Gendarme Corps, Bogdan Enescu, charged with abuse of office. According to the National Anti-Corruption Directorate, this year Bogdan Enescu was paid around 7,500 euros for extra hours, in breach of relevant legislation. Bogdan Enescu has been the head of the Romanian Gendarme Corps since December 2019. Also on Thursday, Dan Hosu, former police and husband to the acting head of the Directorate Combating Organised Crime and Terrorism, Giorgiana Hosu, received a 3-year suspended sentence from the Bucharest Court, in a case in which he is accused of inciting illegal access to a computer system and inciting the use of information not intended for publication. The ruling is not final. One day before, president Klaus Iohannis said that if the DIICOT chiefs husband was sentenced, there would be consequences. Giorgiana Hosu was appointed to office this year by the president, in spite of a negative opinion on the matter by the Higher Council of Magistrates.



    TENNIS Three Romanian players, Monica Niculescu, Irina Bara and Elena Gabriela Ruse, managed on Thursday to get into the final round of qualifications for the main group of the Roland Garros singles tournament. Monica Niculescu defeated Elitsa Kostova 6-0, 6-7, 6-3, and is to play next against the Russian Vera Zvonareva. Irina Bara beat Britains Harriet Dart 7-5, 6-2. In the last round she will take on the Dutch Richel Hogenkamp. In turn, Elena Gabriela Ruse beat American Francesca Di Lorenzo 6-2, 7-5, and will play against Barbara Haas of Austria. Five other Romanians are playing in the Roland Garros tournament – Simona Halep (seeded 1), Patricia Ţig, Irina Begu, Sorana Cîrstea and Ana Bogdan. (translated by A.M. Popescu, L. Simion)

  • The Week in Review October 24-30

    The Week in Review October 24-30

    Political parties have submitted their lists of candidates for the legislative election


    Political parties and independent candidates have submitted their lists of candidates for the December 11 legislative election. Most political factions have candidates for all counties and say their lists include both new names as well as people with vast political experience. The party currently holding most seats in the current legislature, the Social-Democratic Party, followed by the National-Liberal Party, say 75% of their candidates are new people, who are well-trained and honest. Candidacies can be appealed by November 7.



    NATO is consolidating its eastern flank


    More and more countries have announced their contribution to strengthening NATOs eastern flank in the wake of Russias growing presence in the Baltic and Black Seas. The announcement was made by NATO Secretary General, Jens Stoltenberg, at the NATO Defense Ministers Council meeting in Brussels. Representing Romania was Defense Minister Mihnea Motoc. Canada, Germany, the Netherlands, Poland, Turkey and the United States have confirmed their willingness to deploy land, naval and air forces in Romania to consolidate NATOs presence in the Black Sea region, Stoltenberg has said. The NATO official hailed Member States contributions to the four battalions the Alliance wants to set up by 2017 in three Baltic states and in Poland, aimed at dispelling the fears of Russias neighboring states with respect to their growing vulnerability in the wake of the conflict in Ukraine and Russias illegal annexation of Crimea in March 2014. On the sidelines of the meeting, Romanian Defense Minister held talks with British Secretary of Defense Michael Fallon. The British authorities decided to deploy two RAF Typhoon fighter jets to Romania in 2017, with a view to carrying out air policing missions and take part in joint military drills with the Romanian Air Forces.



    The former King of Romania Michael I turned 95


    On October 25, King Michael I turned 95 and the Royal House of Romania organized a series of events, until October 28, to mark his anniversary, including medals and distinctions award galas, concerts and book launches. Radio Romania broadcast a radio drama written by King Michael and Queen Anne 56 years ago. Forced by the communists to abdicate, on December 30, 1947, the former monarch lived in exile. After the Anti-communist Revolution of 1989, he returned to his native Romania and reclaimed his citizenship and part of his estates. King Michael promoted in the western chancelleries, as a special ambassador, Romanias accession to NATO in 2004 and to the EU in 2007. Also on October 25 the Romanian Army Day was observed at home and abroad. Military and religious ceremonies were organized in all garrisons across the country. Floral tributes were also paid at the cemeteries and memorials, in honor of the Romanian heroes in Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Russia, the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine. At present, 780 Romanian soldiers are taking part in international missions around the world, 629 of whom in Afghanistan.



    Over 100 non-fiscal charges will be eliminated as of January 1, 2017


    The Chamber of Deputies this week passed the draft law initiated by the Social Democratic Party to abolish over 100 non-fiscal charges. The law provides for the elimination of the so-called green stamp duty for vehicles, the fees for issuing tax records and temporary passports, for replacing lost identity papers or for alterations in identity papers, the fees for issuing recreational and sport fishing permits. Prior to Tuesdays vote, the Budget and Finance Committee in the Chamber of Deputies passed an amendment, ruling out from the aforementioned package the radio and TV license fee, but the Chamber of Deputies decided to eliminate this fee too starting January 1. The decision has generated harsh criticism voiced by the political class, civil society and representatives of public media institutions, who said the absence of such a fee would significantly impact the autonomy of the public radio and TV broadcasters. Prime Minister Dacian Ciolos says the bill contradicts the law on the functioning of the public radio and television.



    Dacian Ciolos: “The law on the functioning of the public radio and television stipulates that these institutions cannot be funded by the state 100%, under the current legislation. If this law were to be amended, we should notify the European Commission and wait a few months before we get an answer on that.



    In Romania, the radio and TV license fee accounts for 67.56% of the public televisions revenues and for 49% of those of the public radio. The fee stands at 0.8 euros per month for the TV service and at 0.6 euros for the radio service, which makes it the lowest in Europe.

  • A la Une de la presse roumaine – 15.06.2016

    A la Une de la presse roumaine – 15.06.2016

    La Cour Constitutionnelle doit
    décider du sort de quelques 4500 dossiers d’abus de fonction. La loi électorale
    qui prévoit l’élection des maires en un seul tour sera également discutée par
    la Cour Constitutionnelle. Entre temps, les élus souhaitent abaisser les
    charges patronales, alors que les sociétés de l’industrie automobile ont du mal
    à trouver du personnel en Roumanie.


  • La Roumanie et son accord avec le FMI – le tournant

    La Roumanie et son accord avec le FMI – le tournant

    Après 10 jours de pourparlers, à Bucarest, avec les plus hauts responsables roumains et les principaux représentants du milieu des affaires, la délégation du FMI, de la Commission Européenne et de la Banque Mondiale a fait savoir que la 3e évaluation de l’accord de précaution chiffré à 4 milliards conclu avec la Roumanie avait été reportée au mois de novembre.



    Une décision confirmée par le premier ministre roumain Victor Ponta, qui en a expliqué les détails et les conséquences: « L’accord n’est pas interrompu, il n’est pas résilié d’une manière ou d’une autre, il n’est pas dénoncé. L’accord reste en vigueur, ce qui veut dire que si besoin est, certes ce n’est pas le cas pour l’instant, nous pourrons accéder aux fonds mis à la disposition de la Roumanie ; nous bénéficions sans nul doute d’une tranche de 10% destinée au cofinancement des projets réalisés à l’aide de fonds européens. De même, les lignes de crédit ouvertes par la BM pour les programmes des secteurs de la santé et de l’éducation sont également valables et fonctionnels. De ce point de vue, je pense que la confiance que la Roumanie a gagnée de la part des institutions financières internationales et des marchés financiers internationaux et privés est un bien acquis que nous devons garder».



    Les dissensions entre les parties impliquées visent notamment la manière dont sera mise en oeuvre la détente fiscale, vivement demandée par l’ensemble du milieu des affaires de Roumanie. La principale mesure par laquelle l’Exécutif de Bucarest se propose de réduire la pression sur la classe entrepreneuriale est la réduction de 5% des cotisations sociales pour les employeurs. Initialement, la mesure devait entrer en vigueur à partir du 1er juillet. Selon le premier ministre roumain, la nouvelle date de son application et le 1er novembre. Une décision qui ne bénéficie pourtant pas de l’aval des bailleurs internationaux.



    Par ailleurs, aux dires des experts économiques, l’initiative du gouvernement de Bucarest de réduire de 5% les charges sociales payées par les employeurs avaient jeté la pomme de discorde entre les responsables roumains et les représentants du FMI. N’oublions pas que depuis le début de la crise économique, les grands bailleurs de fonds ont toujours leur mot à dire dans les politiques financières élaborées par les gouvernements roumains. Cette fois-ci, le premier ministre Victor Ponta a affirmé que le budget d’Etat était suffisamment fourni pour couvrir les pertes provoquées par une diminution des charges sociales.



    Concrètement, le cabinet invite au calme par la voix de son premier ministre Victor Ponta: « Pas de majoration du déficit budgétaire, pas de taxes ou d’impôts supplémentaires pour couvrir les pertes ».



    Tandis que pour le gouvernement, la réduction des charges sociales versées par les employeurs joue un rôle central au sein du paquet de relaxation fiscale, l’opposition pointe du doigt le gouvernement de gauche et l’accuse d’opportunisme électoral. Pour cause, la mesure sera mise en pratique un mois avant le scrutin présidentiel prévu en novembre. (Trad. Valentina Beleavski, Ioana Stancescu)