BELGRADE -- Serbia must cut pensions and public sector salaries by 15 percent during the budget review, "as these measures are key to a successful fiscal consolidation."
BELGRADE -- Serbia must cut pensions and public sector salaries by 15 percent during the budget review, "as these measures are key to a successful fiscal consolidation."
Source: Beta, Tanjug
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According to the council, pension and salary cuts will save EUR 800 million, "and this is the only measure that will have full effect as soon as in 2015."
Another option they presented was to instead increase VAT by two percent.
Further, council member Vladimir Vukčević advised an increase of the price of electricity by 15 percent, so that the public power enterprise, EPS, "can start breathing" - that is, "stop making losses that are transferred to the state."
Serbia needs to make spending cuts worth almost EUR 2 billion to reduce the fiscal deficit from current 8.3 percent to 3 percent of GDP by 2017, the Fiscal Council also said.
In a summary delivered to reporters before the news conference at the National Bank of Serbia (NBS), the council said that the 2014 deficit will exceed EUR 2.6 billion or 8.3 percent of GDP, which is above the target, as budget revenues will stand at around RSD 50 billion, and spending could be trimmed by around RSD 30 billion.
With the current state of public finances, Serbia has to take out loans worth around EUR 5 billion every year, so as to finance the deficit and loan installments, and these liabilities are growing year by year, the Council notes.
If launched immediately, structural reforms could ensure spending cuts worth around EUR 700 million on an annual level.
In the summary titled “Key Points and Recommendations for Budget Review and Medium Term Fiscal Adjustment 2015-2017”, the Council notes that there is a danger of public debt crisis, which calls for the urgent implementation of fiscal consolidation.
“The government does not have much choice any more or room for further delay,” reads the summary by the Fiscal Council.
Where are sj, rote and Ari Gold, members of Russia's thirty ruble army, to explain that Serbia has a booming economy and the Serb people are living better than those in the U.S.These experts have probably never been to Serbia, yet they seem to know better than the average citizens that have commented on this topic of B92. I'm sure sj will clear up the misconceptions of those commenting below.
(The Count of Kosova, 8 August 2014 07:19)
Be under no illusion, these are just the starting moves in the game of EU accession. Those whom the Government can take money from (pensioners and state employees) will be hammered and yet it is this category of person who is least likely to benefit from any upturn in the economy if and when it happens. It is always a different group of already well off people who reap the rewards of a recovery and the same soft targets who are hit when austerity is called for; in the UK it is called capitalism, in Serbia you can throw rampant corruption and nepotism into the mix. In Serbia's defence they are not alone in these practices, they go on everywhere across Southern Europe and to a lesser but still unacceptable extent elsewhere too. Still want to join the EU?
(ned taylor, 2 August 2014 21:39)
Implementing austerity without broad consensus is not really smart, but most important, there is no willingness for change. It is not rocket science to collect taxes and to fight against corruption on all levels. I have followed a bit the protest movement and the latest comments of the Japanese Ambassador to Bosnia. Nice to see that people there are fed up of "parades of nice cars and fat men in shiny suits doing nothing".
(Zeka, 1 August 2014 14:32)
What is the profile of the members of the Fiscal Council . Presumably, they must have high wages, over 2000 euros, so no austerities measures can affect their quality of life . Their stance is : ‘’ The rich man dines when he wants, but the poor man eats when he is given a piece of bread.’’
They are trying to persuade trade unions and citizens that the austerity measures are the only means to save the country from total bankruptcy, but their chances to persuade poor workers and pensioners are slim. Obviously ,it is not easy to bring down the deficit of more than almost two billion euros. The projecting public expenditure exceeds revenue ,but wages in Serbia hardly cover shopping basket essentials. On the other hand ,a lot of money is squandered through corruptions as in public procurements , money embezzlement in public- sector firms, bad managements ,squandering of millions of euros by politicians, executives ,vice-executives various counselors ,unnecessary agencies, unrealistically high wages and all sorts of thieves. Besides , tax evasion?! A lot of retail shops do not give us fiscal receipts. The thieves and those who are bad managers, squanderers, should recover the embezzled and dissipated money
(Miki, 1 August 2014 12:34)
Why don't we collect first the taxes from the biggest tax debtors and the ones who don't pay their personal income tax in Serbia, as priority?
It is important to have the broad population behind all saving efforts, then normal people like you and me would be more solidaric to drastic salary and pension cuts...
(Zeka, 1 August 2014 11:26)
"With the current state of public finances, Serbia has to take out loans worth around EUR 5 billion every year, so as to finance the deficit and loan installments"
Taking out a loan to pay for a loan, so once the first loan is paid off Serbia will need to take another loan to pay the next loan, so once the second... :O
(Kosovo_Polje1389, 1 August 2014 08:04)
"With the current state of public finances, Serbia has to take out loans worth around EUR 5 billion every year, so as to finance the deficit and loan installments"
Taking out a loan to pay for a loan, so once the first loan is paid off Serbia will need to take another loan to pay the next loan, so once the second... :O
(Kosovo_Polje1389, 1 August 2014 08:04)
What is the profile of the members of the Fiscal Council . Presumably, they must have high wages, over 2000 euros, so no austerities measures can affect their quality of life . Their stance is : ‘’ The rich man dines when he wants, but the poor man eats when he is given a piece of bread.’’
They are trying to persuade trade unions and citizens that the austerity measures are the only means to save the country from total bankruptcy, but their chances to persuade poor workers and pensioners are slim. Obviously ,it is not easy to bring down the deficit of more than almost two billion euros. The projecting public expenditure exceeds revenue ,but wages in Serbia hardly cover shopping basket essentials. On the other hand ,a lot of money is squandered through corruptions as in public procurements , money embezzlement in public- sector firms, bad managements ,squandering of millions of euros by politicians, executives ,vice-executives various counselors ,unnecessary agencies, unrealistically high wages and all sorts of thieves. Besides , tax evasion?! A lot of retail shops do not give us fiscal receipts. The thieves and those who are bad managers, squanderers, should recover the embezzled and dissipated money
(Miki, 1 August 2014 12:34)
Be under no illusion, these are just the starting moves in the game of EU accession. Those whom the Government can take money from (pensioners and state employees) will be hammered and yet it is this category of person who is least likely to benefit from any upturn in the economy if and when it happens. It is always a different group of already well off people who reap the rewards of a recovery and the same soft targets who are hit when austerity is called for; in the UK it is called capitalism, in Serbia you can throw rampant corruption and nepotism into the mix. In Serbia's defence they are not alone in these practices, they go on everywhere across Southern Europe and to a lesser but still unacceptable extent elsewhere too. Still want to join the EU?
(ned taylor, 2 August 2014 21:39)
Why don't we collect first the taxes from the biggest tax debtors and the ones who don't pay their personal income tax in Serbia, as priority?
It is important to have the broad population behind all saving efforts, then normal people like you and me would be more solidaric to drastic salary and pension cuts...
(Zeka, 1 August 2014 11:26)
Implementing austerity without broad consensus is not really smart, but most important, there is no willingness for change. It is not rocket science to collect taxes and to fight against corruption on all levels. I have followed a bit the protest movement and the latest comments of the Japanese Ambassador to Bosnia. Nice to see that people there are fed up of "parades of nice cars and fat men in shiny suits doing nothing".
(Zeka, 1 August 2014 14:32)
Where are sj, rote and Ari Gold, members of Russia's thirty ruble army, to explain that Serbia has a booming economy and the Serb people are living better than those in the U.S.These experts have probably never been to Serbia, yet they seem to know better than the average citizens that have commented on this topic of B92. I'm sure sj will clear up the misconceptions of those commenting below.
(The Count of Kosova, 8 August 2014 07:19)
Why don't we collect first the taxes from the biggest tax debtors and the ones who don't pay their personal income tax in Serbia, as priority?
It is important to have the broad population behind all saving efforts, then normal people like you and me would be more solidaric to drastic salary and pension cuts...
(Zeka, 1 August 2014 11:26)
"With the current state of public finances, Serbia has to take out loans worth around EUR 5 billion every year, so as to finance the deficit and loan installments"
Taking out a loan to pay for a loan, so once the first loan is paid off Serbia will need to take another loan to pay the next loan, so once the second... :O
(Kosovo_Polje1389, 1 August 2014 08:04)
Where are sj, rote and Ari Gold, members of Russia's thirty ruble army, to explain that Serbia has a booming economy and the Serb people are living better than those in the U.S.These experts have probably never been to Serbia, yet they seem to know better than the average citizens that have commented on this topic of B92. I'm sure sj will clear up the misconceptions of those commenting below.
(The Count of Kosova, 8 August 2014 07:19)
Implementing austerity without broad consensus is not really smart, but most important, there is no willingness for change. It is not rocket science to collect taxes and to fight against corruption on all levels. I have followed a bit the protest movement and the latest comments of the Japanese Ambassador to Bosnia. Nice to see that people there are fed up of "parades of nice cars and fat men in shiny suits doing nothing".
(Zeka, 1 August 2014 14:32)
Be under no illusion, these are just the starting moves in the game of EU accession. Those whom the Government can take money from (pensioners and state employees) will be hammered and yet it is this category of person who is least likely to benefit from any upturn in the economy if and when it happens. It is always a different group of already well off people who reap the rewards of a recovery and the same soft targets who are hit when austerity is called for; in the UK it is called capitalism, in Serbia you can throw rampant corruption and nepotism into the mix. In Serbia's defence they are not alone in these practices, they go on everywhere across Southern Europe and to a lesser but still unacceptable extent elsewhere too. Still want to join the EU?
(ned taylor, 2 August 2014 21:39)
What is the profile of the members of the Fiscal Council . Presumably, they must have high wages, over 2000 euros, so no austerities measures can affect their quality of life . Their stance is : ‘’ The rich man dines when he wants, but the poor man eats when he is given a piece of bread.’’
They are trying to persuade trade unions and citizens that the austerity measures are the only means to save the country from total bankruptcy, but their chances to persuade poor workers and pensioners are slim. Obviously ,it is not easy to bring down the deficit of more than almost two billion euros. The projecting public expenditure exceeds revenue ,but wages in Serbia hardly cover shopping basket essentials. On the other hand ,a lot of money is squandered through corruptions as in public procurements , money embezzlement in public- sector firms, bad managements ,squandering of millions of euros by politicians, executives ,vice-executives various counselors ,unnecessary agencies, unrealistically high wages and all sorts of thieves. Besides , tax evasion?! A lot of retail shops do not give us fiscal receipts. The thieves and those who are bad managers, squanderers, should recover the embezzled and dissipated money
(Miki, 1 August 2014 12:34)