The Minister of Labor, Florin Manole, claims that the solidarity package proposed by the PSD is built to support the categories most affected by price increases, such as children from vulnerable families and pensioners. The official explained that the measures will be financed from the state budget and provided details about costs and sources of income.
The Minister of Labor, Florin Manole, said on Thursday, on Digi24, that the proposals included in the solidarity package are the result of a careful analysis and specifically target the people most affected by the price increase.
“I am still firmly convinced that all the proposals from the solidarity package they are balanced and made with a careful analysis of the target groups. We went to children with disabilities, to children who receive the ticket for attending kindergarten, that is, children from vulnerable families, and to pensioners who felt more than others the increase in prices and inflation”Manole said.
According to the minister, inflation especially affects those with low incomes, who spend most of their money on basic expenses. “Inflation mostly affects those who spend most or all of their income on the consumer basket”he explained.
How the social package will be financed
Asked where the funds for these measures will come from, the minister emphasized that the financing of public policies is done from the state budget, not by moving money directly between budget chapters. “In the Government, the budget is not made with the source: we take from there and take beyond. The source of funding for all policies is the budget”said Manole.
He also provided an example of how certain measures can bring additional revenue to the state budget. “The increase in the minimum wage brings additional revenue to the state budget of more than 500 million“said the minister.
Hundreds of millions in child support costs
Florin Manole stated that only the component dedicated to children in the solidarity package requires a significant budgetary effort. “The solidarity package, in the children’s benefits section, costs 360 million lei”he declared.
The minister also rejected fears that raising the minimum wage could have negative effects on the economy or the labor market. “From 2014 to today it has been said many times that if the minimum wage increases, unemployment will increase and the economy will decrease. That didn’t happen”he also stated.
At the same time, Manole explained that the minimum wage increase is regulated both at the national and European level. “There is a European law and directive that says the minimum wage must increase according to certain indicators provided by the National Institute of Statistics”the minister specified.
When the budget could be approved
Asked if the budget could be adopted on Thursday itself, Florin Manole answered that this is possible during the afternoon. “Probably at 4:00 p.m.” said the minister.
