The Government assumed responsibility for a package of seven laws whose adoption is a condition for signing the financing agreement with the International Monetary Fund this October, IPN reports.
In the September 26 meeting of the Cabinet, Prime Minister Pavel Filip said the method of adopting these laws, by the assumption of responsibility by the Government, was coordinated with members of the IMF and the parliamentary alliance.
“If we follow the classical formula, we will lose several more weeks. The risk is that if we do not have a program with the IMF, we will not get financing from other development partners. It is important to follow this formula so as to have financial stability and enough money from the development partners for the current budget year,” stated Pavel Filip.
National Bank governor Sergiu Cioclea said the bill on the remedying of the situation in the banking sector provides that the consequences will be reduced to a minimum when a bank becomes insolvent. The legal framework for managing crises in the banking sector, which will be instituted by this bill, contains provisions that refer to three distinct stages, namely preparation, early intervention and banking resolution.
According to the governor, the bill to amend and supplement the Law on the National Bank and the Law on the Financial Institutions modifies the limits imposed by the central bank on banking transactions with affiliated persons.
Another bill assumed by the Government is the Law on the Common Central Securities Depository. The bill provides that the National Bank will be one of the shareholders of the central depository. This will own at least 2/3 of the shares of the depository.
The bill on the issue of state bonds by which the Ministry of Finance will fulfill its payment obligations related to state guarantees stipulates that the volume of state bonds will be equal to the amounts that Banca de Economii, Banca Sociala and Unibank will owe to the National Bank when the state bonds are issued. According to Minister of Finance Octavian Armasu, the Ministry within seven working days will issue and transmit state bonds to the value of 13.5 billion lei, repayable in 25 years at an interest rate of 5%, to the central bank.
The bill to amend and supplement the 2016 state budget law provides that the revenues and costs will be decreased by 2.65 billion lei each. Octavian Armasu said the deficit approved initially remained at the same level.
Minister of Labor, Social Protection and Family Stela Grigoras said the bill to amend the 2016 state social insurance budget law provides for an increase of over 84 million lei in incomes and costs. The costs for social benefits will be raised by about 60 million lei. The deficit wasn’t modified.
Under the bill to amend the 2016 law on the mandatory health insurance funds, the incomes and costs of the mandatory health insurance funds will be decreased by 59 million lei each. The spending on prophylaxis and on the development and modernization of health facilities was cut.
The assumption of responsibility by the Government means that the laws are adopted without them being subject to the ordinary voting procedure in Parliament.
