Judiciary. The situation of the Romanian justice system is the focus
of the talks held by the First Vice President of the European Commission Frans Timmermans in Bucharest today. He has met
president Klaus Iohannis, prime minister Viorica Dancila, Chamber of Deputies
speaker Liviu Dragnea and Senate speaker Calin Popescu Tariceanu, who are also
the leaders of the ruling coalition formed by the Social Democratic Party and
the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats, as well as members of the parliamentary
committee overseeing the changes to the justice laws. Timmermans
is also having talks with representatives of the judiciary. His visit comes after
justice minister Tudorel Toader earlier proposed the dismissal of the
anti-corruption chief Laura Codruta Kovesi for serious violation of duties and
delaying the resolution of cases. Toader’s request has received a negative
opinion from the Superior Council of Magistracy, but the final say belongs to
president Iohannis, who has repeatedly voiced his appreciation for the
anti-corruption body and its head.
Salary rises. Beginning today,
the salaries of doctors and nurses will rise to the maximum level of the salary
scale for 2022. Labour minister Lia Olguta Vasilescu has announced this measure
as a means of counteracting the exodus of Romanian doctors abroad in recent years.
Consultants, for example, will see their salaries grow four times. The salaries
of pre-university and university teachers will also grow, but less than in the
medical sector.
Weather. A yellow and amber code alert for
cold is in place in Romania until Friday. Schools remain closed this week in
the capital Bucharest and the counties in the south-east and travel is
restricted on several national and local roads in the south and east. The Black
Sea ports also remain closed because of powerful winds. Trains have been
delayed and some cancelled and airports operate in winter conditions. The
Giurgiu-Ruse bridge between Romania and Bulgaria is open, but traffic is busy
and waiting times big. As for the electricity and natural gas supply, the authorities
say there are no longer any problems.
Cold. Almost 50 people have died of cold in Europe
in recent days, especially homeless people. The authorities in some places in
Belgium forced people living on the street to go to shelters, in Germany shelters
were asked to stay open throughout the day and France has announced a record
number of 150,000 places in emergency shelters. Hungary has also taken
protection measures, with temperatures expected to drop to minus 20 in the
west. Blizzard, snow and frost have engulfed the entire Europe, disrupting
travel, cutting off localities and causing schools to close. The Romanian
foreign ministry has issued travel warnings for several countries.
Unemployment. In Romania, the
seasonally adjusted unemployment rate stood at 4.6% in January, the same as in
December, the National Institute for Statistics has announced. At 5%,
unemployment among men was 0.9% higher than among women. Unemployment among
persons aged between 25 and 74 was estimated at 3.5% in January (3.9% among men
and 2.9% among women). According to the National Institute for Statistics, the
number of unemployed people in this age group accounted for 70% of the total
number of unemployed people estimated for January.
Visit. The European Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Management Christos Stylianides today had talks in Bucharest with
interior minister Carmen Dan and the state secretary for emergency situations
Raed Arafat. The topics discussed included ways to consolidate the efficiency
of preventive action and of the collective capacity of EU member states to
respond to disasters and the simplification of administrative procedures in
case of emergency situations.
