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13 March, 2019

A roundup of the main stories in Romania today.

Newsroom, 13.03.2019, 19:48

Budget bill. Parliament in Bucharest passed the initial version of this years budget bill, which president Klaus Iohannis sent back to Parliament. Earlier, the president had challenged the bill in the Constitutional Court but his objections were dismissed so he resorted to the last instrument at his disposal before being obliged to sign the bill into law. Klaus Iohannis says the allocation of budget resources is “based on an unrealistic forecast” and that it affects the running of essential public institutions as well as the development of local communities and a number of strategic investments. Ever since the bill was sent back to Parliament, the governing majority formed by the Social Democratic Party and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats said they had no intention of amending it, because its current provisions ensure the necessary resources for the important sectors of the economy. Klaus Iohannis on Monday signed into law the social security bill so that pensioners should not have to suffer because of what he termed as “the incompetence of the Social Democratic Party”.

Museum. Romanias Prime Minister Viorica Dancila said Romania pays special attention to combating anti-Semitism, racism, xenophobia and hate speech. The Romanian official attended the conference titled “The Future of Memory: The National Museum of Jewish and Holocaust History in Romania”. Viorica Dancila said this museum will contribute to educating society and owning to some difficult moments in the past. The Prime Minister said effective measures must be taken to combat anti-Semitism and make sure Jews can live in safety in Europe. The Conference was organized by the Romanian Presidency of the Council of the European Union, in cooperation with the Romanian Foreign Ministry, the Elie Wiesel National Institute for the Study of the Holocaust and the Federation of Jewish Communities from Romania.

Cooperation. Romanian-British cooperation in the area of defence and the common contribution to Europes security and defence were some of the topics discussed by the Romanian defence minister Gabriel Les and his British counterpart Gavin Williamson during a trip by the former to the UK on the 12th and 13th of March. The Romanian minister underlined the excellent collaboration within the Strategic Partnership and the UKs constant and solid commitment in Romania, whose consistency is particularly visible in the implementation of the NATO measures to consolidate the eastern flank. The two officials signed a memorandum of understanding on Romanian-British cooperation in the area of defence, a document which will allow the expansion of existing cooperation and the identification of new areas of cooperation with mutual benefits, reflecting Romanias status as a NATO member and the current dynamics of bilateral relations in the new security context in Europe.

Flu. The number of people who have died this season in Romania because of the flu has risen to 173, according to the latest report published on Wednesday by the National Centre for Supervision and Control of Communicable Diseases within the National Institute of Public Health. The latest victim is a 66-year old man from Dambovita county, who had contracted the type A flu virus. He had pre-existing medical conditions and had not been vaccinated against the flu. According to the National Institute for Public Health, more than 1.3 million people have taken the anti-flu vaccine this season. Romania is confronted with a flu epidemic.

Income. The average net income in Romania has dropped to some 625 euros in January this year, down by 0.7% as compared to December 2018, reads a report made public on Wednesday by the National Statistics Institute. The highest level of the average net income was reported in the IT services field, while the lowest level in the apparel manufacturing industry. The average net income has gone up by 18.2% as compared to January 2018.

No-confidence vote. The opposition has initiated a no-confidence motion against finance minister Eugen Teodorovici, to be debated on Monday in the Chamber of Deputies and voted on on Wednesday. Titled “The Social-Democratic greed undermines national economy”, the document says the latest emergency decree introducing additional taxes for banks, energy and telecom companies harms the countrys economy, and the ministers responsible must be held accountable in Parliament.

Inauguration. Romanian Deputy PM Ana Birchall on Wednesday took part in the opening in Romania of the Technology and Innovation Hub of the Indian company Infosys. Attending the ceremony were also Senate Speaker Calin Popescu Tariceanu, the Indian Ambassador to Romania, Thanglura Darlon, representatives of the Infosys company and of the business circles. On this occasion, Ana Birchall reiterated the support of the Romanian Government and of PM Viorica Dancila for the development and consolidation of the Extended Partnership between Romania and India.