28 Mai 2010
Government signs off letter of intent to IMF
The Government approved the letter of intent to IMF, the members of the Cabinet following to hold a follow-up session, most likely on Sunday, according to Executive officials.
The Government has thus signed the list of promises to the International Monetary Fund which includes a 25% cut in public wages and 15% reduction in pensions and social benefits, in an effort to contain the budget deficit within the agreed target range of 6.8%. If the Government had failed to implement any corrective measures, the budget deficit would have swollen to 9.1% of GDP.
The Prime Minister Emil Boc said the measures agreed with the International Monetary Fund for cutting back on public spending will be set out in two law drafts for which the Government will assume liability - one regarding the containment of the budget deficit within the agreed target range, while the second one will detail the actions undertaken in the pension system.
The minimum wage, the minimum pension of 350 lei, child allowances, handicap benefits, and the guaranteed minimum income will not be affected by the austerity measures while the child care benefits will be cut by 15% instead of 25% as initially proposed, the governing coalition said yesterday.
Vladescu: The letter of intent can be delivered tomorrow, or the day after tomorrow
The Minister of Finance, Sebastian Vladescu said after the Government session that the letter of intent to International Monetary Fund and the memorandum with the European Commission were due to be signed by the central bank governor, prime minister and president, and once the letter is signed, Romania can deliver it very quickly to the lenders.
“The two documents will be delivered to the two institutions and will enter the approval cycle so as to receive the tranche from IMF sometime in late June and the tranche from the EC at a later date, depending on the internal policies of each institution. The tranche from the IMF will go to the National Bank of Romania’s coffers while the one from the European Union to the Ministry of Public Finance”, said Sebastian Vladescu after the Government gave the green light to the letter of intent to the IMF and memorandum with the EU.
The Prime Minister Emil Boc said the measures agreed with the International Monetary Fund for cutting back on public spending will be set out in two law drafts for which the Government will assume liability - one regarding the containment of the budget deficit within the agreed target range, while the second one will detail the actions undertaken in the pension system.
The minimum wage, the minimum pension of 350 lei, child allowances, handicap benefits, and the guaranteed minimum income will not be affected by the austerity measures while the child care benefits will be cut by 15% instead of 25% as initially proposed, the governing coalition said yesterday.
Vladescu: The letter of intent can be delivered tomorrow, or the day after tomorrow
The Minister of Finance, Sebastian Vladescu said after the Government session that the letter of intent to International Monetary Fund and the memorandum with the European Commission were due to be signed by the central bank governor, prime minister and president, and once the letter is signed, Romania can deliver it very quickly to the lenders.
“The two documents will be delivered to the two institutions and will enter the approval cycle so as to receive the tranche from IMF sometime in late June and the tranche from the EC at a later date, depending on the internal policies of each institution. The tranche from the IMF will go to the National Bank of Romania’s coffers while the one from the European Union to the Ministry of Public Finance”, said Sebastian Vladescu after the Government gave the green light to the letter of intent to the IMF and memorandum with the EU.