RO Govt. unveils 2021 budget and promises big reforms

Romania's Government will pursue big reforms in four areas (pensions, incomes, education, and public administration) this year, announced prime minister Florin Citu along with the publication of the 2021 budget planning, Adevarulreported.

As previously announced, the public deficit is planned to reach 7.16% of the GDP this year, down from 9.8% of GDP last year.

PM Citu assured that he would get involved personally in promoting these reforms and thoroughly evaluate each minister's performance at the middle of the year when the budget execution for the first half of the year becomes available.

He stressed that the incomes in the budgetary sector were frozen, and he expects from each minister and state-owned company a plan of reforms by mid-year.

Compressing the public payroll, pensions, and other social benefits within the legal provisions is one of the main elements supposed to support fiscal consolidation, judging from the measures outlined by PM Citu.

The bonuses and other benefits will be maintained at the level of December 2020, and the holiday-related bonuses and vouchers are waived.

The overtime will be compensated in kind. The social security expenditures - the biggest single expenditure in Romania's budget (some one third) - will increase by RON 4.4 billion (EUR 0.9 bln) to RON 143 bln (just under EUR 30 bln, or 14% of GDP) this year.

(Photo: Ilona Andrei/ Inquam Photos)