BRATISLAVA, June 15, (WEBNOVINY) — Finance Minister Peter Kazimir has threatened his Cabinet colleagues that budgetary funds will be frozen if they are not more successful in fulfilling plans of this year’s budget. He reported after the meeting of the Solidarity and Development Council on Friday that for now he is stopping all public procurements at ministries that are not necessary and also is restricting expenditures that are not inevitable for fulfilling elementary functions of the state. The budget does not develop according to plan. At present its deficit climbed to 70 percent of the annual projection.
Minister Kazimir attributes the unfavorable development of this year’s budget to several reasons. He named among them the system of accounting for government debt, real problems connected to the halt of some operational programs based on auditors revealed errors and the bad situation in the financial administration and the associated shortfall in some revenues. “I have decided to turn to all heads of departments in order to halt all public procurements taking effect today and also expenditures from the state budget that are not directly associated with elementary activities of these departments. I have also urged them to fulfill their duties. I urgently call on them to meet these measures as otherwise we will be forced to freeze expenditures, which would be connected to fulfillment of law-set duties,” said the finance minister on Friday.
SITA