[ad_1]
He also points out that the plan was not consulted with the municipalities, and the presentations in the Seimas were limited to “superficial and worn phrases.”
“The European Commission urges us to make the most of the opportunities that are opening up to help the people and sectors most affected by the pandemic. The pandemic has affected Lithuanian regions in different ways, so the consequences will be different. However, the plan was drawn up without much discussion within the country, without discussions with the municipalities. What is presented reminds me of a plan that includes a series of old projects that have been in drawers for a long time, driven by various interest groups. All of this is just rhetoric of new rhetoric, ”says Social Democrat R. Budbergytė.
According to her, the presentations of the plan in the Seimas were incomplete, they were limited to presentations of abstract directions.
“We have heard phrases for a long time: soon we will have a fairer, smarter, greener and growing Lithuania. These are the winds. Declarative words describe presentations for which our bureaucrats are well trained,” says R. Budbergytė.
According to the parliamentarian, there is much talk within the country about the need to increase the autonomy of the municipalities, so the funds provided for in the plan would be “a unique opportunity to increase the financial independence of the municipalities.”
However, municipalities or social agents are not consulted. After all, the government has a great opportunity to part with those 2,200 million. grants to invest according to the needs of specific municipalities. Who knows best what is needed most: bureaucrats in Vilnius ministries or municipalities? President Gitanas Nausėda also spoke about this ”, recalls the member of Seimas.
The former Finance Minister also drew attention to Prime Minister I. Šimonytė’s statements that it is planned to allocate funds from the Economic Recovery Plan for the implementation of the Government’s program.
“It just came to our knowledge then. The money from this plan will arrive in Lithuania in 2023, that is, in the year in which the municipal elections will be held. When now there is no serious discussion with the entire municipality about this plan, it may happen that conservative and liberal municipalities enjoy the rain of money, while the rest may need less. The government program has received ambiguous evaluations and the measures for its implementation require serious analysis “, says R. Budbergytė.
Under the European Union Mechanism for Economic Resilience and Recovery, Lithuania receives LTL 2.225 billion. grants in euros.
To receive the planned funding, the European Commission must approve Lithuania’s National Economic Recovery and Resilience Development Plan, which Lithuania must prepare by April 30 this year.
As ELTA recalls, last week Prime Minister Ingrida Šimonytė said that, as far as she knows, the European Commission (EC) has no complaints about the plan drawn up by the Government. The Prime Minister noted that disappointment with the prepared plan may have arisen due to unfounded expectations raised by the previous term government.
“I know and hear that there are some perhaps disappointing expectations that there were some commitments during the last period that some projects will definitely be financed with these funds.” Not everyone could give such guarantees, because the whole plan will have to be agreed with the EC and have the approval of the European finance ministers, “he said.
I. Šimonytė emphasized that the funds from the Economic Recovery Plan are expected to be allocated for the execution of the Government program.
“Our government has said from the beginning that this is not a separate fund to revive something. It is a fund dedicated to the implementation of the Government program, which provides measures that, in turn, will eliminate the many years of criticism of the EC to education, health care, social exclusion, as well as implement the preconditions that they are green and digital “She said.”
