Increase in wages, pensions and minimum wages in Serbia

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Today, the Serbian National Assembly approved the rebalancing budget by majority vote. 207 deputies in favor and 4 against.

The law will enter into force the day after its publication in the Official Gazette.

The National Assembly did not accept the rebalancing amendment.

“We will have increased salaries, minimum wages, pensions”

Finance Minister Siniša Mali said the budget for 2021 would include an increase in salaries, minimum wages and pensions.

The budget will be approved by the government in the next ten days, Mali said. When it comes to the country’s economy, Mali claims that Serbia will have the highest GDP growth in Europe.

“Our country has been fighting on two fronts for nine months, to save lives and save the economy. The goal of rebalancing is to contribute to both,” Mali said.

Milicevic: The priority is to preserve the health of the citizens of Serbia

MSF MP Djordje Milicevic said the amendment’s proponents did not see the priorities that should be achieved with rebalancing in the right way.

“The priority is to preserve the health of the citizens of Serbia, when I say citizens of Serbia, I also mean representatives of national minorities.”

He said that the objective is to improve equipment, hospitals, clinical centers and that is the objective of the budget rebalancing.

Mali: despite the world’s biggest crisis, the state is meeting its dinar obligations

Speaking of the amendment submitted to rebalancing, Finance Minister Siniša Mali said that there is no discrimination against any minority and that the state fulfills its obligations in dinars.

Mali claimed that a pandemic started in March, that the state acted responsibly then, that everyone was asked to say unnecessary costs and investments so that the state could see how to deal with the crisis.

He said that there is no discrimination against any minority, or citizens, and that he cannot accept that someone transfer the situation to the terrain of discrimination. “Our country is developing, we are moving forward, we are investing in roads, rail infrastructure, hospitals,” Mali said.

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“We are not against helping and we will help. We hope that the Minority Council will say how much they need to function. To this day, I have not received that answer. When we get it, they will get all the money they need.”

In addition to the world’s biggest crisis, the state is meeting its dinar obligations to everyone, Mali said.

The United Valley-SDA Sandzak parliamentary group submitted an amendment to the budget rebalancing for 2020.

Enis Imamovic of the United Valley of the SDA Sandzak said the goal of the amendment is to stop reducing funding for the work of national councils.

“With this amendment, we are not asking for an increase in funds, but rather to realize the funds planned for 2020. The funds are necessary to continue the projects started,” said Imamović.

Imamović explained that the national councils received a letter from the Office for Human and Minority Rights to reduce their funds for regular activities by 20 percent.

165 deputies are present at the session. The session was also attended by Finance Minister Siniša Mali.

On Tuesday, the Serbian Assembly ended the debate in principle on the budget rebalancing for 2020, and the debate on an amendment to the rebalancing will begin today when the vote is expected.

Board members discussed the 2020 budget review

In today’s session, the Commission on Finance, Budget of the Republic and Control of the Expenditure of Public Funds considered in detail the Draft Law of Reforms to the Budget Law for 2020 with the Draft Decision of Approval of the Decision of Reforms to the Financial Plan of the Pension and Disability Insurance Fund, RHIF, SOVO Fund and NES for 2020.

An amendment to the bill was presented, which was not accepted by the Government and the Committee.

The session was chaired by the President of the Board Aleksandra Tomić and was attended by members and deputy members of the Board: Nikola Jolović, Vladimir Marinković, Ana Čarapić, Olivera Pešic, Sonja Vlahović, Adrijana Pupovac, Milenka Subić, Bratjeavić, Zoguimir Marić, Ugljević Milorad Mijatović and Zoltan Pek.

The session began on Tuesday, November 10, and yesterday there were no activities in parliament due to the national holiday, the Day of Reconciliation.

“I hope there will be a short discussion on this one amendment and a vote,” said Serbian National Assembly Speaker Ivica Dačić.

It should be recalled that Finance Minister Siniša Mali also attended Tuesday’s session, who then explained in detail the rebalancing plan.

Mali then specified that the second rebalancing of the budget of the Republic of Serbia for 2020 foresees total revenues of 1,292.4 billion and expenditures in the amount of 1,774.4 billion, that is, a deficit of 483 billion dinars, and noted that the projection of budget revenue is conservative.

“It is a deficit that in no way compromises our macroeconomic stability. We are the average of the European Union (EU). On the other hand, there are countries like Great Britain, whose projected deficit is 16.5 percent, as well as France and Spain. “They have incomparably higher projected deficits. It is important to determine that and compare it to the share of public debt in GDP. That amount will not exceed the Maastricht level of 60 percent, which means that we are in a stable financial position.” Mali said.

He said that this rebalancing provides an opportunity to continue the fight against coronavirus even more decisively and strongly.