Opposition party claims the Budget Bill 2007 will deepen the crisis in Moldova

The Budget Bill for 2007 will lead to sharper poverty and migration, and will deepen the economic crisis in the Republic of Moldova, the Moldovan Humanist Party (MHP) told a news conference Monday, November 27. Ion Mereuta, MHP president, has said that the budget for 2007 will not be able to secure a decent life for the citizens, on the contrary, will amplify poverty, the income gap, and excessive migration will generate a crisis of workplaces and will thoroughly boost demographic crisis of the Republic of Moldova. According to him, a research carried out by MHP shows that the necessary minimum for living is about MDL 6.7 thousand for an inhabitant from the city and over MDL 2.4 thousand for an inhabitant from rural regions. Elena Cirisau, a member of the party, qualified the budget as irresponsible, because the management of incomes is not directed to social fields and does not favor the economic stability of the country, and Grigore Baltag mentioned that the budget does not promote a coherent strategy for the development of the agricultural field particularly, and of the rural sector on the whole. Deputy-chairman of MHP, Elvira Pantea mentioned about the necessity of urgently settling the normative framework in compliance with the European requirements as regards promotion of export, creation of some necessary conditions for the local producers, modernization of the credit-banking strategy, etc. MHP urged the Parliament to adopt without delay a law on the minimum consumer basket. On Thursday, November 23, the Parliament adopted the Law on the state budget for 2007 in 3rd reading, the final one. The budget for the next year includes incomes of MDL 12.088 bln and expenses of MDL 12.161 bln with a budgetary deficit of almost MDL 73 mln.