September 28, 2021 UPDATE

A news update

Newsroom, 28.09.2021, 19:41

Covid — On Tuesday over 11,000 new Covid-19 cases were reported in Romania, which is an absolute record since the beginning of the pandemic, out of over 73,000 tests, which is also a record. Most cases are in Bucharest, almost 2,000, and the contamination rate in the capital has exceeded 5.5 cases per thousand inhabitants. Over 660 localities have over 3 Covid-19 cases per thousand inhabitants, accumulated in 14 days. On Tuesday, the authorities announced that 1,267 seriously ill patients are being treated in intensive care, including 17 minors. 208 Covid- associated deaths have been reported in the last 24 hours. On the other hand, the 3rd dose of Covid vaccine started being administered in Romania on Tuesday, as the country is in the grips of the 4th pandemic wave, when the number of infections and hospitalized people is skyrocketing. Over 20 thousand Romanians got vaccinated with the 3rd dose on the first day of the campaign, the authorities showed. Over 22 thousand have been vaccinated in the past 24 hours with the 1st or 2nd dose. The coordinator of the vaccination campaign, Valeriu Gheorghiţă, said on Tuesday that the COVID vaccine coverage in Romania stands at about 33%, and in Bucharest at 51.1%.

Resignation – The Liberal Adrian Oros resigned the position of minister of agriculture and rural development, saying that “for prime minister Florin Cîţu, agriculture and the food industry were never priorities”. He says the ministry’s budget for this year is 60% that of last year, which has a negative impact on ongoing projects, and that no major project in agriculture was included in the National Plan for Recovery and Resilience. Adrian Oros was the only minister in the Cîţu cabinet to support Ludovic Orban as leader of the National Liberal Party. Cîţu won the leadership of the party for the next four years. At the beginning of September, the Save Romania Union USR – PLUS Alliance withdrew from the ruling coalition with the Liberals and the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians in Romania following a disagreement over a regional development fund and filed a no-confidence motion in Parliament, refusing to return to government with Cîţu as prime minister.

Motion — The censure motion submitted to Parliament by the Social Democratic Party (in opposition) on Tuesday will be read on Thursday, in a plenary session, and will be debated and voted next Tuesday, the joint Permanent Bureaus of the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate have decided. As for the censure motion initiated by USR PLUS, former no. 2 in the government coalition, and the ultranationalist Alliance for the Union of Romanians – AUR, the joint Permanent Bureaus did not set a timetable. They decided to wait for the motivation of the Constitutional Court’s decision regarding the notification submitted by the Liberal prime minister Florin Cîţu related to the existence of a constitutional conflict between the Government and Parliament. On Tuesday, the Constitutional Court admitted the notification of the prime minister in relation to this censure motion, but claims that the motion can be debated and voted. The motion was registered on September 3 and read in the Parliament’s plenary session on September 9. The Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians in Romania – UDMR, which remained in the governing coalition alongside the National Liberal Party – PNL, has called for urgently restoring the governing coalition to overcome the political crisis.

Certificate – The European Covid certificate may become mandatory for Romanian healthcare staff working in the public and private sectors, under a new bill proposed by the health ministry. The certificate serves as proof that a person is fully vaccinated against Covid, has tested negative for the virus or has recovered from the infection in the last six months. Medical staff who does not meet any of the three conditions face suspension for a month and even termination of the labor contract later on. The bill also stipulates that the staff will have to pay for the Covid tests. Employers will only cover testing costs for persons who are advised against getting the vaccine for health reasons.

Ash cloud – The ash cloud released into the atmosphere after the eruption of the volcano on the Spanish island of La Palma in the Canary Islands reached the territory of Romania. The particles containing sulfur dioxide and other chemicals have been pushed by the wind through the west of Romania, spreading across the country. The particles will start disappearing as of Wednesday. Romanian experts are monitoring the air quality and have given assurances that there are no reasons for concern at the moment. Meanwhile, on the island in the Atlantic Ocean, the population of the non-evacuated areas was advised to stay in their homes and not to open the windows. The volcano released lava into the atmosphere again, accompanied by toxic gases.

Visit – The Prime Minister of the Republic of Moldova (ex-Soviet state with a majority Romanian-speaking population), Natalia Gavriliţa, met on Tuesday, during her official visit to Brussels, with Adina Valean, European Commissioner for Transport, and Kadri Simson, European Commissioner for Energy. According to a press release from the Moldovan government, the talks focused on the importance of transport as a connection element between the EU and the Republic of Moldova, but also as a potential for economic development for the Moldovan businesspeople, on the role of the Union in developing the energy sector in the Republic of Moldova, on possibilities of completing the projects started with the neighboring countries and which can be an alternative to the gas and electricity supply of the Republic of Moldova. (LS)