Romanian Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan met with the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen on Thursday to discuss the rescue of 231 million euros of EU funds.
The Romanian prime minister described talks as “very productive” with his government focusing on “progress made … in the areas of budget, reforms, and investments.”
The meeting came after Romania’s top court on Feb. 18 upheld a government move to raise the retirement age for judges and prosecutors and cap their pensions, delivering a major win for Prime Minister Bolojan’s reform drive.
The judges’ generous benefits have been described by Bolojan as “privileges which are unbearable socially and for the budget”.
There was mounting public anger and political turbulence in recent months, as the Bolojan’s reform-driven government attempts to recalibrate the system and scrap the gold-plated pensions. The EU had blocked 231 million euros over the failure to curb the pensions.
The ruling capped judicial pensions at 70% of final gross salary. Judicial pensions, like those of diplomats and the military, are in a special category independent of tax contributions and can reach around 5,000 euros, far above the 600 euro national average.
In talks with von der Leyen, Bolojan emphasized the Government’s commitment to efficiently use of EU funds to support the relaunch of economic growth in the country and Romania’s efforts to collaborate with European institutions to ensure sustainable economic development.
Bolojan and von der Leyen agreed that Romania’s requests regarding payment requests 3 and 4 of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR) will be analyzed before the Commission’s final decision.
“Very good discussions with Ursula von der Leyen, who appreciated the reforms adopted by the Government. … Tthe Prime Minister presented the current situation regarding the milestones related to magistrates’ pensions…. It was agreed that they would consider our requests with a view to the Commission’s final decision…. in the first part of March we will have an answer,” according to a Government briefing.
Von de Leyen appreciated the fact that Romania was on target for reducing the budget deficit.
On Monday, Bolojan called on the ministries responsible for attracting National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR) funds to speed up the required reforms and investments ahead of the August 31 deadline, according to a Government press release.
He also urged for no further delays in paying invoices for work carried out under PNRR projects. Otherwise, “political accountability will follow,” the Prime Minister warned during an interministerial committee meeting,
He said the loss of European funds would have direct consequences for the political and administrative leadership.
“Accountability for failing to meet commitments will be of two types. There will be political accountability for ministers and state secretaries. This includes dismissals from office if Romania loses PNRR funds. As for directors and administrative staff, it would be unacceptable for them to continue receiving EU funds bonuses if our country loses money,” said Ilie Bolojan.
