Save Romania Union (USR) Senator Cristian Ghinea believes that the future prime minister must be nominated ‘as soon as possible,’ emphasising that ‘only then,’ with the future governing coalition’s leadership in place, can negotiations on the fiscal package to reduce the budget deficit resume.

„The purpose of this working group was to review the solutions that can be put on the table. Decisions are made by leaders, by the president and especially by the future prime minister. My opinion is that the latter must be nominated as soon as possible, which does not mean that this is the end of the negotiations, but only then, with the future coalition’s leadership at the prime minister level having been assumed, can negotiations resume from where we left off,” Ghinea said on Monday at the Palace of Parliament, when asked to estimate the time limit for a fiscal package.

As for tax increases, Ghinea argued that all spending cuts must first be clarified before discussing these increases.

„Our problem is that we need to clarify all spending cuts, point by point, in writing, before discussing tax increases. That was the mandate I had from USR, which I imposed during the negotiations, and that’s why I upset so many people (…). This is what I am doing, and I believe I am doing the right thing because, you see, we did not agree to the tax increase before agreeing to the spending cuts. That is why USR sent me there, and that is what I have been doing for the past two weeks, with all the scenarios on the table. I believe that they will continue after the prime minister is appointed, the negotiations will continue, because, I repeat, there is quite a big difference in vision between the parties,” the senator concluded.

AGERPRES