August 8, 2017
The Senate and Chamber of Deputies convene in special parliamentary session as of Tuesday
Newsroom, 08.08.2017, 13:00
PARLIAMENT – In Romania, the Senate and Chamber of Deputies convene, as of today, in a special parliamentary session. The agenda includes the emergency ordinances that the Government formed by the Social Democratic Party and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats in Romania passed last week, and which need to be endorsed by Parliament before they can take effect. These legislative acts concern the capping of special pensions in the defence, public order and judicial sectors, as well as of child allowances, and the raise of police staff salaries. The Liberals, in opposition, argue that the legal requirements for the Chamber of Deputies to convene have not been met, and threaten to notify the Constitutional Court in this respect.
UNIONS – The Romanian Justice Minister, Tudorel Toader, had a meeting today with representatives of penitentiary trade unions. He said he would personally coordinate the National Penitentiary Agency and would have weekly meetings with the representatives of prison personnel to find solutions to their demands. Trade union leader Sorin Dumitraşcu said the Justice Minister promised to have a meeting this week with the Prime Minister, in order to discuss the granting of up to 15% bonuses to penitentiary personnel, who have not been included in the categories of public sector staff benefiting from pay raises. Unionists also demand the improvement of work standards, solutions to the issue of personnel shortage, the reorganisation of prisons and the building of new ones. Penitentiary employees intend to stage street protests next week, over inadequate work conditions. They have been on a work-to-rule strike since August 1. We remind you that the improvement of detention conditions in Romania is a requirement issued by the European Court for Human Rights.
INFLATION – The National Bank of Romania adjusted the inflation forecast for end-2017 from 1.6% up to 1.9%, the central bank governor Mugur Isarescu announced on Tuesday, when he presented the Inflation Report. For next year as well, the National Bank raised its inflation forecast to 3.2%, up from the previously estimated rate of 3.1%. Isarescu explained that these changes were triggered by the fiscal policy, by the increase in foodstuff prices as well as by the political tensions in June, which temporarily affected the exchange rate for the national currency.
DEFENCE – The Romanian Defence Minister, Adrian Ţuţuianu, and Gen. Nicolae Ciucă, General Chief of Staff, had talks in Bucharest with the head of the Alabama National Guard, Major Gen. Sheryl Gordon, who is on a visit to Romania. The talks approached the regional security environment, particularly at the Black Sea, the strategic partnership between the US and Romania, and the planned equipment purchases for the Romanian Army. Ţuţuianu has recently announced that the Plan for military equipment procurement has been approved, and reiterated that Romania was committed to earmarking 2% of the GDP to the defence sector, as it has undertaken in its capacity as a NATO member state. During his visit to Romania, the recently appointed chief of the ANG, Major Gen. Sheryl Gordon, will take part in an exercise of Romanian mountain troops and will visit the “Getica Joint Training Centre in Cincu, Brasov County.
WEATHER – The weather is hot in the south-west and south of Romania, while in the hilly and mountain areas in the south and the centre rainfalls, thunderstorms and strong wind are reported. The highs of the day range between 24 and 36 degrees Celsius, with a 26-degree reading in Bucharest at noon. Weather experts warn that as of Wednesday a new heat wave will reach Romania, with temperatures going up to 38-39 degrees Celsius. Moreover, for the next 2 weeks meteorologists expect the weather to alternate between highs of 34 degrees Celsius and rainfalls in most regions, especially in the mountains.
(translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)
