BRATISLAVA, April 28, (WEBNOVINY)- The top priority of the government of Robert Fico will be consolidation of public finances. Prime Minister Robert Fico defined the key task of his administration after the Cabinet approved the government manifesto for the four-year tenure on Friday.
The document however is not quite clear about how Slovakia should squeeze its deficit below 3 percent of GDP in 2013. Yet, the prime minister says that concrete measures will be formulated based on a social dialogue.
“If somebody expected concrete figures s/he was mistaken. The government program is about polices. As far as concrete data are concerned those have to be the result of a social dialogue,” said Fico. He added that after the government manifesto will get the go-ahead from parliament the so-called Council of Solidarity will be convened. At its sessions all social partners will be represented and it should provide answers to questions on how to increase tax for highly profitable businesses, what form the progressive tax will have and others. The task is to shift the burden of recovery to shoulders of those strong and wealthy, according Fico.
Saving is not important said the prime minister in order to be positively perceived by Brussels though if the country fails to meet its consolidation plans it might be fined EUR 140 million. The recovery of public finances is important mainly for the sake of stability of Slovakia and its trustworthiness in the eyes of financial markets, he emphasized. The prime minister says that the government’s goal will be to push through a model in Brussels that will not mean only the duty to save but also support economic growth.
SITA
