A look at the main headline-grabbing events this past week
The private pensions scandal - measures and penalties
The Financial Supervisory Authority in Romania on Thursday levelled penalties against NN, the country's biggest private pensions fund for spreading information meant to destabilise the pensions system. On Wednesday, NN sent an email to all its clients warning about possible measures to nationalise private pensions funds. The leader of the Social Democratic Party and speaker of the Chamber of Deputies Liviu Dragnea said Parliament would soon take steps to sack the entire management of the Financial Supervisory Authority. The Finance Ministry has categorically denied plans to nationalise the private pensions funds.
The Serbian police detain former Romanian MP Sebastian Ghita in Belgrade
The former Romanian MP and businessman Sebastian Ghita, who was on an international most wanted fugitives list, was tracked and detained by the Serbian police on Thursday night in Belgrade four months after his disappearance. The Romanian authorities are now taking the necessary action to obtain his extradition. When asked for identification by the police, he presented false EU ID. Sebastian Ghita disappeared on the 21st of December 2016 and was first named on the country's most wanted fugitives list for breaking the conditions of his bail. On the 10th of January, a Supreme Court panel issued a European arrest warrant for Ghita, who was then also named on an international most wanted fugitives list through Interpol. Ghita is facing trial in two corruption cases and is under criminal investigation in two others.
The unitary pay law is yet to be submitted to Parliament
The submission of the much-awaited unitary pay law for public sector employees to Parliament for debate and approval has been postponed. The leader of the ruling Social Democratic Party and Chamber of Deputies speaker Liviu Dragnea said the bill will also remain available for public input this week. The bill provides for an increase in monthly incomes by more than 50% over the following five years. The planned increases are estimated at more than 7 billion euros in total. Prime minister Sorin Grindeanu says the talks with trade unions and the institutions targeted by the bill will continue in Parliament to speed up the passing of the law. The law, which is supposed to come into force on the 1st of July, covers all public institutions with the exception of the National Bank of Romania and the Financial Supervisory Authority. The army and police staff are the first to benefit from the pay rises. The other categories of public sector employees will see their salaries grow as of January next year. The president will have the biggest salary in the public system, accounting for 12 minimum wages per month. The salaries of the highest dignitaries will drop, while those of parliamentarians, judges and prosecutors will go up.
Vaccination bill is made public
The Romanian healthcare ministry on Tuesday published its new vaccination bill. This provides for the creation of county vaccination commissions able to step in if parents refuse the compulsory immunisation scheme. Healthcare minister Florian Bodog says a chapter containing penalties will also be introduced into the bill after public and parliamentary debate. He says his ministry will assume responsibility for the treatment of the possible side effects of vaccination. According to the ministry, 21 persons have died in Romania from measles. Since last September, around 4,000 cases have been reported, according to the National Centre for the Communicable Disease Surveillance and Control. To contain the spread of measles, medical authorities continue a campaign to vaccinate children aged between 9 months and 9 years.
Government adopts country's decentralisation strategy
The government adopted the country's decentralisation strategy on Wednesday. Deputy Prime Minister Sevil Shhaideh says all ministries will carry out impact studies in the next three months and that the sectoral laws regulating the decentralisation process will be adopted within the next 7 months at the latest. The areas covered by the process are agriculture, culture, tourism, the environment, healthcare, education and extracurricular activities, youth and sport. The general goal of the strategy is the transfer of new responsibilities, with the exception of those relating to inspection and control, to local authorities, namely mayors and local and county councils. Many of these responsibilities are currently held by the ministries' decentralised directorates.
Crowding at border check points in Romania
Traffic is busy at Romania's border crossing points following the implementation, on the 7th of April, of a new European regulation tightening border control ahead of the Easter holidays. Waiting time at the border varies from one to six hours. The busiest checkpoints are in the west of the country. The authorities are trying to strike a balance between citizen security and traffic flow and recommend the use of all border checkpoints. To support Romanian citizens travelling abroad during the Easter holidays, the foreign ministry has made available a travel guide containing useful recommendations, information about the most frequented tourist destinations at this time of the year, as well as information that can help Romanian citizens avoid possible unpleasant situations that may appear during their stay abroad.Useful Links
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