The Social Democratic Party (PSD) returned on Monday with the request that the governing coalition parties "urgently" adopt a solution for the protection of vulnerable consumers, given the "galloping" rise in energy and natural gas tariffs.
"The Social Democratic Party comes back with the request that the governing coalition parties urgently adopt a solution for the protection of vulnerable consumers who can no longer cope with the galloping rise in energy and natural gas tariffs. Economy Minister Virgil Popescu's statement about the need for a swifter regulation, by the end of the year, of the Vulnerable Consumer Law confirms what PSD showed a long time ago, when it requested a special session in the Chamber of Deputies aimed at the modification and urgent adoption of this normative act. PSD considers that in addition to the parliamentary path, the PNL-USR-PLUS-UDMR [National Liberal Party-Save Romania Union-Unity, Freedom and Solidarity Party-Hungarian Democratic Union of Romania] coalition also has the option of an emergency ordinance providing for concrete measures to stop the uncontrolled increase in energy and gas tariffs and to protect vulnerable consumers before the arrival of the cold season," reads a PSD press release, sent to AGERPRES on Monday.
According to the Social Democrats, a mechanism for capping energy prices should be established if the market registers an artificial rise in tariffs, such as an increase of more than 30 percent, within a six-month interval, and the value of the utility bill for the persons whose income proves insufficient in relation to the increase of tariffs should be partly subsidized.