The Skvernel government, which works “day and night”, has achievements: but in reality not everything is so beautiful



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The Government’s obligation to submit an annual activity report at the beginning of each year is stipulated by law.

The document presented to Seimas reviews the work done, as well as discusses the priorities for the activities of the Cabinet of Ministers in the near future.

S. Skvernelis is scheduled to present the Government Activity Report for 2019 from the Seimas rostrum on May 12. However, this document has reached Parliament before.

These achievements range from economics to education.

In the introduction to the report, the word of S. Skvernelis.

He mentions that the presentation of this document faces the greatest threat to public health and state resistance to the coronavirus during the period of restoration of independence.

The Prime Minister explains that the Government continues its activities strengthening the well-being and trust of the Lithuanian state, its citizens and their families.

“We want people to be more satisfied with all of us in the state. “Perhaps not everywhere we respond perfectly to all the challenges in the world, but, I guarantee, the government works both day and night, trying to manage the crisis and looking to the future,” he says.

We may not respond perfectly to all the world’s challenges everywhere, but I guarantee that the Government will work both day and night in an effort to manage the crisis and look to the future.

S. Skvernel explained that no one could have predicted a coronavirus pandemic, but in 2020 we were confident that we were ready for the challenges.

S. Skvernelis mentions that the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) increased 12.4 percent from 2016 to 2019.

Ignoto Kuprio / 15min photo / Poverty

Ignoto Kuprio / 15min photo / Poverty

Wages increased almost 9% last year and the monthly minimum wage increased to € 607.

“We are aware of the danger to the state and society due to the degree of poverty and social exclusion. Compared to 2016, in 2019, the average old-age pension increased by more than a third. Despite the current crisis, in 2020 the Average old-age pension for those with the required duration of service should reach 399 euros, ”he says.

At the same time, S. Skvernelis mentions that from this year social assistance pensions and benefits for orphans, disabled children and others will be increased, and since September almost 50 thousand people will receive free meals. children.

According to the Prime Minister, the state has never financed the health of citizens to the extent that it does now.

Photo by Vida Press / Students eat lunch

Photo by Vida Press / Students eat lunch

Among the achievements of the Government in the fields of education, culture and science, highlighted the fact that children were given access to a cultural passport, the number of free students in higher education institutions was increased, restructured vocational training, increased teacher salaries and the like.

S. Skvernelis emphasizes that “we can affirm that we have taken the planned 200 million. euros. ’

We can affirm that we have taken the planned 200 million. euros

According to the World Bank’s Doing Business 2020 survey, Lithuania is reported to have reached the highest position it has ever held: 11th out of 190 countries.

Also the fact that in 2019 the defense budget amounted to 2.03 percent. GDP

Photo by ARTEC and Lukas Tamošiūnas (KAM) / The first infantry fighting machine

Photo by ARTEC and Lukas Tamošiūnas (KAM) / The first infantry fighting machine “Vilkas” has been delivered to Lithuania, serial production has started

“Today, it has become clear that the challenges caused by the pandemic will make many jobs difficult, but we, all of Lithuania, must realize that after a few months of tension we will continue with everything that will serve the good of the Lithuanian people.” Lithuania is our common good and the basis of life. Past generations look at us from the past and we feel a responsibility towards future generations. The work done in 2019 allows us to look to the future and further increase citizens’ confidence in the state, its capabilities and the stability of progress, ”concludes S. Skvernelis in his speech.

You can see the full Government Activity Report for 2019 here.

An area where both legs are limped

Professor Algis Krupavičius of Vytautas Magnus University (VMU) said that the structure and content of current government reports were formed in 2017, when this document focused on five priorities of the Cabinet of Ministers program: a sustainable society; education, science, culture; public sector; economic Sciences; national security and defense.

In the past, the work of the ministries was highlighted. That was no longer in the reports from last year.

As the political scientist points out, the Government declares that the most important activities are carried out in three directions: strengthening the state, increasing the well-being of citizens and families, and increasing public confidence in the state.

Photo by Marius Vizbaras / 15min / Algis Krupavičius

Photo by Marius Vizbaras / 15min / Algis Krupavičius

“Regarding the first point of strengthening the state, if we look especially at the prism of the economy, then 2019 was indeed a time of economic growth and the results in this area should be optimistic.” But in other areas, first of all, to increase prosperity and strengthen confidence, the sky over the Government and over Lithuania is certainly not clear and blue. Of course, the government is trying to find positive results in the report, which can boast, but in some respects the boast does not come to light, “says A. Krupavičius.

Clearly, the government is trying to find positive results in the report it can boast of, but in some respects the boast doesn’t come out much.

According to the VMU professor, trust can be measured first through public opinion polls.

For example, a comparison between February 2020 and February 2016 shows that confidence in the presidential institution increased slightly, to just over 57 percent. (In 2016 – more than 47 percent).

Sigismund Gedvila / 15min photo / Meeting of the Seimas Government Coalition Council

Sigismund Gedvila / 15min photo / Meeting of the Seimas Government Coalition Council

However, Seimas and the Government, the branches of the government of the ruling majority, cannot boast of the growth of public confidence, as noted by A. Krupavičius.

In 2016, the Seimas trusted just over 9 percent. of respondents, and in February this year, just under 11 percent.

“The change is about 1.5 percent. On the positive side. But almost 25 percent trusted the government in 2016, and their pre-quarantine rating was 22 percent in February. Overall, confidence in the Government has decreased. If we look at it from the perspective of time, the trust of society and citizens in the most important government institutions, unfortunately, does not increase in Lithuania. There is really no possibility of talking about an advance in the field of trust. “noted the political scientist.

According to A. Krupavičius, the second area where the Government apparently limps on both legs is social.

Viktorija Savicka / 15min photo / Man

Viktorija Savicka / 15min photo / Man

Although the 2019 activity report contains fairly objective figures, they should be viewed in a time perspective.

Professor at Vytautas Magnus University emphasized that in the social field, not only has no progress been made, but we have a clear freeze.

Suppose you mention that the risk of poverty and exclusion in 2018 and 2019 was the same: 28.3 percent.

“It just came to our attention then. In addition, some groups in society, such as people of retirement age, are at risk of poverty and almost mass exclusion: 43%, according to statistical data,” said A. Krupavičius.

We are not moving anywhere. Furthermore, some groups in society, such as people of retirement age, are at almost massive risk of poverty and exclusion: 43%.

Vidmantas Balkūnas / 15min photo / Poverty

Vidmantas Balkūnas / 15min photo / Poverty

The second key indicator in the social field is income inequality. According to the political scientist, when looking at it in the context of time, the situation develops only in a negative direction.

A. Krupavičius mentioned that, for example, according to Eurostat data, in 2012 in Lithuania 20 percent. Maximum and 20%. The income gap of the population with the lowest incomes was 5.3 times, and in 2018 and 2019 it was 7.1 times.

Laimikis.lt arch. photo / Šnipiškės

Laimikis.lt arch. photo / Šnipiškės

Another indicator is poverty at work.

“There are no statistics in the Government report for 2019, but there are data for 2018 and, according to them, worker poverty reaches 8.1 percent. In 2012, it was 7.6 percent. And here are the statistics, not opinions, not subjective evaluation ”, emphasized the political scientist.

Julius Kalinskas photo / 15min / Wallet

Julius Kalinskas photo / 15min / Wallet

Other indicators that are important to quality of life can be relied on, for example, how many people do not shower or bathe at home, use open-air baths, and the like.

“If we compare it to other countries, like Estonia, our indicators would be very small. And again, there is little or no progress in those areas. I would say that the picture is really very ambiguous and in it, perhaps a pessimist could really find more dark strokes that light “, commented A. Krupavičius.

I would say that the image is really very ambiguous and in it, perhaps a pessimist could really find more dark than light strokes.

The work would be evaluated by seven

At the same time, A. Krupavičius highlighted several areas where good results have been achieved.

According to him, the growth of wages and GDP was evident. Not only the businesses, but also the Government made a contribution here.

“It just came to our attention then. Overall increase in wage levels. Only, unfortunately, it is growing very unevenly: for some groups of the population it is growing, for others it is not necessarily or clearly not enough,” added the political scientist.

Sigismund Gedvila / 15min photo / Warm and spring Wednesday afternoon

Sigismund Gedvila / 15min photo / Warm and spring Wednesday afternoon

Child Money is a working instrument introduced by this government. However, the question of how much it reduces poverty and exclusion, according to A. Krupavičius, remains very open.

The pension area is one in which the Government is said to have made progress.

“Insufficient, but progress is obvious,” said a VMU professor.

It is not enough, but progress is obvious.

He also mentioned that Lithuania had reached a commitment to allocate 2%. of GDP for national defense.

“And, probably, the list of areas where we could say that, yes, this Government has taken serious measures to increase the progress of the country and society, would be almost complete,” believes A. Krupavičius.

Arno Strumila / 15min photo / Gypsies Nausėda receives members of the Government

Arno Strumila / 15min photo / Gypsies Nausėda receives members of the Government

When asked how he evaluated the government’s overall performance last year, the political scientist said on average.

“If I were to evaluate on a ten-point scale, I could write seven enough. But not much more. The instructions are correct. But both in strengthening the state and increasing the welfare of society, as well as increasing trust in society and the state, I think it is far from achieving sufficient results, “he said.

Swim downstream

According to economist Sigismund Maurice, the same song has been sung in government reports for many years. The presentation of some performance measures on a macroeconomic basis, for example in terms of GDP, average wage growth, is flawed.

First, according to the expert, it is necessary to have a certain comparable basis.

Photo by Josvydas Elinskas / 15min / Žygimantas Mauricas

Photo by Josvydas Elinskas / 15min / Žygimantas Mauricas

“Suppose you use that benchmark in finance, with what you are comparing. Since Lithuania is in a rather favorable situation, since it has its own Baltic sisters, then one should compare Latvia and Estonia. And then those statistics should ring a bell. not that, say, wages and GDP have grown by the same amount in three years, but, lo and behold, they have grown in Lithuania more or less than the average in the Baltic states. So, of course, that assessment did not It would be very good, because, if I’m not mistaken, growth in Lithuania was even slightly lower than there, looking at what period to take, or very similar. That’s when the question arises: where is the government contribution if growth was the same as in the other Baltic countries? “

This is when the question arises: where is the government contribution if the growth was the same as in the other Baltic countries?

Consequently, according to Maurice, it was sailing downstream, taking advantage of the favorable general economic situation throughout the region.

However, he agreed that because of the “child’s money,” the government could attribute its laurels to itself.

Luke April / 15min photo / Money

Luke April / 15min photo / Money

But then it would be appropriate to provide more operational indicators, such as poverty reduction and others. They arrive very late and often do not allow a statistical estimate of the exact impact achieved by certain measures.

“The simple act of giving ‘money for children’ does not guarantee that one or the other objective is achieved or has been achieved,” said the economist.

Maurice said that the main responsibility of the government was the public sector. Therefore, the annual activity report should focus on your achievements and not on the economy as a whole.

Although the achievements of the Cabinet of Ministers include an increase in financing for certain areas, an increase in the salaries of teachers, professors and doctors, the economist emphasized that, for example, an increase in salaries does not equate to an improvement in quality.

Scanpix Photo / Lecture

Scanpix Photo / Lecture

“We should look again at what goals have been set and how we are achieving them. Let’s say that Lithuania spends a lot of money on education and higher education, but the question really is whether we really want to follow the path we are currently taking. We mainly prepare students, but their quality It is not high. It depends on the objectives set: what we are looking for and what we have achieved. Just because the money has increased does not necessarily mean that the quality has improved, “said Maurice.

Rescued by a coronavirus pandemic?

In the public sector, in the economic sphere, J. Maurice said it could be divided into two stages: before last spring and after.

He would rate the activities of the Cabinet of Ministers until the spring of last year with 8 points out of 10.

According to the economist, continuity was ensured, especially since expectations for the government were low enough.

Sigismund Gedvila / 15min photo / Family Family Time

Sigismund Gedvila / 15min photo / Family Family Time

He mentioned that sufficiently bold decisions have been made in the area of ​​tax reform. For example, contributions from employees and employers to Sodra have been merged.

Fiscal discipline was observed. Of course, in part due to the fact that certain restrictions have been introduced, both from the Fiscal Discipline Law and from the European Commission.

“Certain long-term strategic directions were implemented, for example, national defense funding reached 2%. GDP and we were able to do it quickly enough. Major infrastructure projects were implemented, business environment improved, Lithuania attracted a record number of investments. I don’t mean in absolute terms, but compared to Latvia and Estonia, Lithuania has become a leader, “Ž.Mauricas said.

He also highlighted the fact that regional exclusion began to naturally decrease. Kaunas, Klaipeda recovered and Šiauliai recovered a little.

Photo by A.Aleksandravičius / Panorama of Kaunas old town

Photo by A.Aleksandravičius / Panorama of Kaunas old town

“Overall, the results were really better than expected. I think many will agree with that. And the business environment, as I mentioned, was favorable enough. Also, there was still a growing focus on reducing exclusion. social, “said the economist.

However, since the spring, especially after getting involved in the electoral marathon, according to Maurice, confidence had faltered.

Saulius Skvernelis in Šiauliai

Saulius Skvernelis in Šiauliai

He recalled that during the discussion of the 2020 budget last year, several hasty and ill-considered proposals to raise taxes were launched.

There was a distraction from the automobile pollution tax, which was supposed to be introduced last year.

Julius Kalinskas photo / 15min / Vilnius

Julius Kalinskas / 15min / Vilnius Photo “Acropolis”

“It just came to our attention then. And also, of course, the stagnation of reforms, in both education and health, has led to a natural deterioration in that assessment. Perhaps the government was partially saved by the coronavirus pandemic, because if it weren’t for him, the estimates would be much worse, “said the economist.

Perhaps the government was partially rescued by the coronavirus pandemic, because if it were not for that, it would be an estimate, I think, much worse.

According to Maurice, in many other countries, the popularity of governments tends to increase during such epidemics. Unless the situation is handled very poorly.



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