The Social Democrat Party (PSD) and Alliance of Liberals and Democrats (ALDE) have 250 mandates, so 54 percent of the total number of mandates – enough to accomplish parliamentary majority, and a first meeting between the leaders of the two parties took place on Thursday, revolving around the governing programme, the Social Democrat chair, Liviu Dragnea declared.
“Today the Central Electoral Bureau finished the distribution of deputies’ and senators’ mandates for each party to have entered Parliament. PSD will hold a total of 221 mandates, which represents 47.5 percent. I have heard about two conditions: a mathematical condition and a political one for achieving parliamentary majority. Mathematically, PSD together with ALDE have a big enough number to hold the majority in both Chambers and in the Joint Chambers. Practically, PSD and ALDE have 250 mandates – 54 percent of the overall number – so the mathematical condition is fulfilled,” Dragnea specified in a press conference, at the PSD headquarters in Baneasa.
As regards the second condition – the political one – the PSD leader highlighted that it was fulfilled by Romanians, on Sunday, when voting.
“Whoever doesn’t respect Sunday’s vote means he doesn’t respect democracy and the sovereignty of this people,” he emphasized.
The PSD leader specified the meeting with ALDE was about the governing programme.
“I’ve had today [e.n. – Thursday] the first meeting with our ALDE colleagues. (..) We’ve had an almost final discussion about the governing programme. It will be followed up tomorrow and the day after tomorrow, with colleagues from both parties to work for rendering the governing programmes compatible. Luckily, there are no major differences. We have also talked about all the rumours that have circulated intensely these past days and especially today. I don’t know if pressures are made on Mr Calin-Popescu Tariceanu, if there were any made, I am sure he will share soon enough. But, as far as we are concerned, just as both us and ALDE have said during the campaign and the citizens voted in full knowledge, the governing alliance is PSD and ALDE, there is no hesitation on our part or that of ALDE. (…) We will definitely sign a protocol, it is natural for that to take place,” the PSD chair said.
Regarding the consultations initiated by the president of Romania, Liviu Dragnea stated that he did not turn down and will never refuse an invitation at consultations if they fall within constitutional provisions, when it comes to designating the future Prime Minister and the establishment of the future Government.
“As long as the counting, distribution and allocation process of mandates hadn’t been completed, we had no basis for the discussions. It was proven that they didn’t lead to any result. And just as the President said on numerous occasions that he had set forth some conditions, I also said during the campaign that we can go to the consultations within the constitutional limits, respectively after Parliament has been convened. After this, PSD will openly go to these consultations,” specified Dragnea.
“ Immediately after investing the government, we’ll raise minimum wage to 1,450 lei”
The minimum wage will be raised, immediately after the government is sworn in, from 1,250 lei to 1,450 lei, stated the national leader of the Social Democratic Party (PSD), Liviu Dragnea on Thursday night .
He presented in a news conference the ‘calendar’ of implementation of the main measures included in the Social-Democrats ruling programme, considered for 2017 by the future government to be made in alliance with the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats (ALDE).
“We will eliminate the healthcare contributions for all pensioners. Pensions smaller than 2,000 lei will be exempt from income tax. We will cancel the HG 800/2016 and will adopt a Government Decision (HG) to lead to a diminishing in the price of medicines that have lost their patents by 35pct on average,” said Liviu Dragnea.
Dragnea added that ‘the students’ grants will grow from the current 86 lei/student to 201 lei/student for each university.”
The PSD leader mentioned that as of 1 March 2017, ‘the PNDL [National Plan for Local Development] 2 programme will kick off, so to ensure over 5,000 news local projects’ financing.’
“Also on 1 March, published will be the specifications for the starting of the construction programme of houses for youths, with the first batch of 500 [houses]. (…) Also on 1 March, the subsidies’ in agriculture will be paid,” said Dragnea.
He announced that without being ‘a joke’, another series of measures will come into force with 1 April. Dragnea mentioned, among others, a ‘law on prevention’ that will make all control bodies to never enforce sanctions before compelling the economic operators to conform with regulations if they were found with irregularities.
The PSD leader added that by April, the future government wishes to have the “Transport Master Plan” approved by the Parliament.
“From 1 April, as well, the procedures for the carrying out of the purchasing programme of 3,000 ambulances will commence, one for each village of Romania,” he said. Dragnea specified that in May 2017, the future government has in view to implement the ‘Startup Nation’ programme focused to allocating 10,000 non-refundable grants worth maximum 200,000 lei.
On 1 May, the future government envisages to kick off a broad forestation programme. ‘We planned to timber 5,000 hectares in the remaining half year,’ said he.
For June 2017, the new government foresees “to finalise the selection process of the best offers for the Romanian Army’s endowment with frigates or corvettes, planes or armored vehicles.” “In this respect, I’m asking the incumbent government to not sign contracts that are focused on the endowment of the Romanian Army without the approval of the future Parliament,” added Dragnea.
He stressed that on 1 July the Sovereign Fund for Development and Investments’ will be established along with the “endorsement of the Uniform Pay Law” and “the irrigation programme for 1.3 million hectares,” will kick off’ and the prefeasibility studies will be complete as well as “the identification of the lands to be used for the construction of the national hospital and the eight regional hospitals will also be finalized.”
In August, the future government wishes to start, among other things, the construction programme of 500 daycares and kindergartens, the purchase and stockpiling for the next two years of all of the vaccines for the population. In September, added Dragnea, the future government intends to “start the purchase of at least 20 planes for the national transport company TAROM” and to commence “the screening programmes for the detection of illnesses.”
From what he showed, Liviu Dragnea expressed hope that starting with 1 January 2017 ‘the law on eliminating the 102 non-fiscal taxes and rates be enforced.’
“We await tomorrow’s (Friday – author’s note) decision of the Constitutional Court of Romania (CCR), and if favourable, we hope that the President of Romania will expedite the promulgation of this law so it will come into force with 1 January. We also hope that President Iohannis will promulgate the law already declared constitutional regarding the increase, on average, by 15pct of the incomes of the staff of the Education and Health care. If, for various reasons, these laws will not be published in the Official Gazette, we have found the legal procedures so that in the first month of 2017 they will be adopted and bear fruit. Only as information, regardless of what happens if delayed or not, after 1 January our budget draft law includes the effects of these laws,” concluded the PSD leader.
