January 4, 2021

Click here for a roundup of domestic and international news

Newsroom, 04.01.2021, 13:55

PANDEMIC – The total number of Covid-19 infections
worldwide has exceeded 85.5 million with a death toll of more than 1.85
million. The USA is the country with the highest number of infections followed
by India, Brazil, Russia and France. The UK, which has lately seen a surge in
the number of infections, is the first country to use as of today, besides
Pfizer/BioNTech, a vaccine made by the Oxford University for the Astrazeneca
pharmaceutical group. The new vaccine, cheaper and easier to store, is expected
to change the immunization process in the UK. According to Radio Romania
correspondent in London, the campaign to administrate the Oxford-Astrazeneca
vaccine starts at a critical moment – the number of infections has exceeded 50
thousand per day in the past week, a situation created by the new strain of the
virus, which was discovered in southern Britain. The Astrazeneca vaccine has
also been approved in India, the world’s second most populous country. As of
today, Norway imposes additional restrictions to prevent an increase in the
number of infections. According to the country’s Prime Minister, there is
evidence of a new wave of infections, due to Christmas celebrations and the new
strain discovered in Britain. Spain is also expected to toughen security measures
in several regions, in order to prevent a third wave of the pandemic.

TALKS – The government in Bucharest is expected
to hold talks this week on the 2021 state budget. According to Liberal Prime
Minister Florin Citu, the budget is going to be built around a 7% GDP deficit
and be submitted for Parliament approval by the end of the month. According to
the Prime Minister, the 7% value is proof of the firm commitment to fiscal
consolidation without hindering the economy. The present budget would allow for
the extension by June 30th of the active measures decided against the
background of the present pandemic, namely compensations granted to employees
during the suspension of the individual employment agreements and financial
support for employers. Talks are also expected to focus on a support programme
for the HoReCa industry and travel agencies. The government might also tackle
this week a law on slightly raising the national minimum wage, while wages in
the state-owned enterprises are to be frozen at the level of December 2020.

DECISION
– The National Committee
for Emergency Situations in Romania has updated their list of countries and
areas with the highest infection rate and made a decision on the resumption of
the flights towards the UK. People coming to Romania from this country are
supposed to isolate themselves for 10 days and must have taken a Covid-19 test
at least 48 hours before their arrival. Flights to the UK were suspended on
December 20th after a fresh, more contagious virus strain had been discovered
in Britain. Italy has been included on the list of countries with a higher risk
of transmission.

MEDIA The Liberal MP Alexandru Muraru has requested the setting up of a
Parliament committee to investigate the activity of the Romanian Television and
Romanian Radio Broadcasting Corporation. Muraru, vice-president of the
Education Committee with the Chamber of Deputies believes that rejecting the
activity reports of the two institutions’ boards of directors is not enough to
assess the level of what he described as censorship, propaganda in favour of
the opposition Social Democrats, and public money embezzlement committed by the
two institutions. Iulian Bulai, president of the Committee for Culture, Art and
Mass-media with the Chamber of Deputies, has announced that he will meet on
Tuesday the head of the National Audio-Visual Council Monica Gubernat for talks
over the faulty communication, which distorts the authorities’ messages
referring to the Covid-19 pandemic. The reaction comes after the National
Television on New Year’s Eve aired a programme mocking the measures taken to
contain the pandemic.

COVID-19 – In the past 24 hours Romania has reported over 31
hundred fresh cases of Covid-19 infections, as revealed by the 10 thousand
tests carried out nation wide, the Strategic Communication Group announced on
Monday. Roughly 644 thousand people have been infected with the novel virus
since the first case was reported in Romania in February last year. Out of
these, 577 thousand have been declared cured. 78 people have died to the virus
in the past 24 hours bringing the death toll since the onset of the pandemic to
16,057. 11 hundred are in intensive care and the authorities are bracing up for
a new wave of infections after the winter holidays. According to Raed Arafat,
head of the Department for Emergency Situations, although the immunization
campaign in Romania has commenced, prevention measures, like face covering,
hand washing and social distancing remain mandatory. The vaccination campaign
has been extended in Romania, which is to activate over 90% of the 376 centers
for medical personnel and those serving in medical-social centers. Nearly
13,500 medical workers had been immunized in the first stage, and authorities
plan to step up the campaign and have over 20 thousand people immunized on a daily
basis.

(bill)