Cabinet meets in mine to mark first year in office

Cabinet meets in mine to mark first year in office

"The responsibility and work are the key words for all the ministers in the government. Our work means continuous action," said Vucic.

He added that the government "has no right to constant lamenting and excuses, but must work to move toward the goal and prosperity."

"We are condemned to the hardest things in foreign policy and in natural disasters, but we are also condemned to succeed," said Vucic.

"The recovery of the industry is not enough, we must do more for our villages. Farmers have helped in a bad situation with milk in the last days, for which we are not at all to blame, because someone before us we signed a disastrous SAA (with the EU)," he also remarked.

According to the prime minister the current government has held 116 meetings during the past year.

"Not all of us have always behaved in the most responsible manner. I say this not to assign blame but so we understand where mistakes have been made and so we can go forward working in a more responsible and better manner," said Vucic.

He also told his ministers they have "the privilege of working in difficult times" and said it was "a historic moment."

"We must work harder and harder. If we were to work the same that would not be enough, and I am not saying it would not be good," stated Vucic.

According to him, "changes will have to be made in the coming years" both in the government and in parliament but also "in relation to the political life," while he "hopes" that during the next year of his cabinet's mandate "there will be strength" to present a draft law that would reduce the number of MPs in the Serbian parliament from 250 to between 125 and 150.

"In the context of political reforms we must also solve the issue of electoral laws," said Vucic.

He explained that the decision to hold Monday's cabinet meeting in the Kolubara basin was made because the place was "a symbol of what we've been through in the past 12 months."

"The country was in the water up to the neck, the condition in which we found it when we took over the government," Vucic was quoted as saying, adding that the government has "worked hard."

Vucic added that economic indicators are now "good," that investors are "regaining confidence in Serbia," and stated that the next World Bank "Doing Business" list will see Serbia "jump 50 places."

The prime minister also mentioned "tycoons" to say they "are not, nor will be in control of this government."

According to Vucic, the Serbian economy did not start going downhill overnight, while "it was always thought that the solution will come from the sky, will be brought by someone else, and that it was the duty of someone else to bring it to us."

"Many have not yet felt and seen the clear effects of fiscal consolidation and success in budgetary savings and increased revenues, but these difficulties will not deter the government of Serbia to continue reforms. Quite certainly we will provide a better and different future for everyone," said he.

Vucic added that "politicians never managed to see beyond the next election."

"That is why the time has come for someone to take responsibility and do as must be done in any responsible country in the world. Today's circumstances are not the work of our hands, but we have to accept the responsibility to correct them," said Vucic.

He also stated that "today the wallet of Serbia is healthier" than it was a year ago, and announced the budget deficit at the end of April to be half the planned figure, "about RSD 30 billion."

Previous expectations and the agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), he pointed out, predicted a deficit of 72 billion.

Vucic said that gross VAT income in April was "higher" than in the same month of last year.

He pointed out that "much remains to be repaired in the country in order to arrive at the starting position of a year ago," and pointed out that in its latest report, the European Commission "indicated a positive move forward when it comes to Serbia."

Vucic also stressed that reducing the deficit was "the hardest part of the job" and thanked the citizens for their "perseverance and sense of responsibility," while on the other hand, he said the government had shown "a degree of seriousness, commitment and responsibility, all the things we were not used to before."

According to the prime minister, "investments are satisfactory, but must be even better," because "the only way to restore the strength of the country is to have long-term investment that will create new jobs."