Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan stated on Thursday that no agreement was reached following the discussions on the reform of magistrates’ pensions, held on Wednesday at the Cotroceni Presidential Palace.

„Each of us presented our viewpoints, but we did not reach a solution acceptable to both sides, nor did we get close to a version that might lead to a formula on which we could find common ground,” Bolojan said on Thursday, speaking to Euronews Romania.

In his view, a major issue is the retirement age for certain professional categories, including magistrates.

„There are two important aspects that do not depend on any individual’s vision, but on realities that cannot be disputed. We can no longer sustain, nor afford, either from the standpoint of sustainability or social fairness, retirement at 48 or 50. An excessively early retirement age is no longer feasible; this is a reality we cannot ignore. Please consider that today, in Romania, among those aged 55 to 64 – who should represent a very significant proportion of the workforce – only 53% are engaged in economic activity. Our country ranks second to last in Europe in terms of the share of working-age people participating in the economy. Only Italy is behind us. Therefore, if we want to have more money in the state budget for healthcare, education, or investment, these funds can only be collected from people working in Romania, not from those who are not working,” the prime minister stressed.

Referring to pension levels, the head of the Executive noted that the average pension in the magistracy is currently close to 5,000 euros, pointing to the very large gap between this and the national average pension. Under Bolojan’s proposed model, the average pension in the magistracy would be around 3,200 euros net per month.

„Please consider that the average pension at retirement in the magistracy is currently nearly 5,000 euros (…). Meanwhile, the average pension in Romania is 500, 550, 600 euros today. The difference between the average pension and that in the magistracy is extremely large, and these things – whether we like it or not – must be corrected, because it is both a matter of achieving some degree of fairness and of having a system that remains viable in the years ahead. (…) If what I proposed were applied, it would amount to 70% of the last salary, meaning roughly 3,500 euros net, with the 10% health contribution applied – the same applied to all pensions above 3,000 lei – which would reduce it by a further 300 euros, resulting in 3,200 euros net per month,” the Prime Minister added.

The Superior Council of Magistracy had previously confirmed, in a press release, the failure of Wednesday’s discussions at the Cotroceni Presidential Palace on the reform of magistrates’ pensions, although it said that magistrates’ representatives had shown „openness to resolving the issues”. AGERPRES