Delay in enactment of Romania's second fiscal reform package set for mid-August by the ruling coalition
The Anghel Saligni scheme of public investments, a key initiative funded from the national budget, will not be frozen, according to recent announcements. The ruling coalition in Romania reached this agreement in a meeting on July 23.
Deputy Prime Minister Tanczos Barna has explained that the scheme will resume next year, aiming to avoid situations where mayors initiate more projects than the overall annual budget can finance. The prioritization of projects will help ensure that resources are allocated to investments with a high degree of execution.
The funds for the Anghel Saligni scheme will not be increased, and the evaluation process for each project is expected to be completed over the next two to three weeks. This evaluation will be conducted on an individual basis, a concession obtained in negotiations within the coalition.
The county councils will discuss with the Ministry of Development each project within this timeframe. Sorin Grindeanu, the interim president of the Social Democratic Party (PSD), has indirectly confirmed this.
Meanwhile, the second package of fiscal reforms is expected to be agreed by the end of July and enacted in the first part of August. This package, coordinated by Deputy Prime Minister Dragos Anastatsiu, focuses on structural improvements in state-owned enterprises and enhanced revenue collection.
The package includes reforms to companies in which the state is a majority shareholder, amendments to tax legislation, measures to reduce inefficiencies in the health system, and actions to raise overall revenue intake. Additionally, it is expected to include reforms of the local public administration through layoffs and decentralization, targeting the medical system and public companies.
Sorin Grindeanu's statements regarding the second package of reforms have a political dimension, aimed at convincing his party that he has obtained better terms for the second package from Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan. However, there is no confirmation in the provided search results about Sorin Grindeanu commenting on the Anghel Saligni scheme specifically.
The lack of financing for all projects currently under development is frustrating for all mayors across the country, according to Deputy Prime Minister Barna. Supplementary invoices totaling RON 6 billion (approximately EUR 1.2 billion) were issued by contractors at the end of last year due to a situation where more projects were initiated than the budget could finance.
Grindeanu is seeking to secure a full term at the party's congress this autumn and is under constant pressure from influential members to take a dominant role in the ruling coalition with regard to the fiscal reform packages. However, the details of these negotiations are not publicly known.
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- The Anghel Saligni scheme, a subject of policy-and-legislation, is set to resume next year, as announced by the Deputy Prime Minister Tanczos Barna, following negotiations within the ruling coalition.
- The ongoing discussions surrounding the second package of fiscal reforms, a crucial part of general-news, are marked by political intricacies, with Sorin Grindeanu, the interim president of the Social Democratic Party (PSD), trying to position himself favorably within the coalition, vis-a-vis Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan.
