Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan on Friday advocated for the adoption of a package aimed at reducing administrative expenses, noting that he does not believe "anything will happen" if the flat-rate allowance for parliamentarians is cut by 10%.
"I will support the adoption of this package and hope that, in the coming period, by discussing all aspects that have been contentious in recent days, we can reach a solution so that every institution, from the Romanian Parliament - I do not think anything will happen if the flat-rate allowance for parliamentarians is reduced by 10%, for example - to other institutions, participates in this effort, allowing Romania to get through this difficult situation as quickly as possible. The sooner we adopt these measures, the shorter the period and the lower the social costs," he explained during a press conference at Victoria Palace of Government.
Bolojan also called for the merging of dispatch centres from local police, county police, municipal police, gendarmerie, and border police. This, he said, could free up around 1,000 personnel to ensure public safety on the streets and improve the coordination of patrol units.
According to the prime minister, thousands of gendarmes currently perform full-time security duties at numerous institutions, such as the Court of Accounts headquarters.
"There is no activity in the afternoon, nor on Saturdays and Sundays. Instead of having five gendarmes at each Court of Accounts office, you could have one gendarme in the morning, and outside office hours a dispatch system with cameras, as is used in thousands of private companies in Romania. This secures the facility with far fewer personnel and at much lower costs. The 2,000-2,500 gendarme posts currently assigned to security could instead be deployed on the streets to fight crime and ensure citizens' safety," he emphasised.
Ilie Bolojan highlighted Internal Affairs Minister Catalin Predoiu's proposals for efficiency and administrative cost reduction.
"In areas with staff shortages - as is the case in the Ministry of Internal Affairs - you have the option to hire new people, which increases costs, or to redistribute personnel and operate more efficiently. This must be done first to improve security. And, yes, if it turns out that hiring is necessary, then new hires must be made," he added.
The prime minister also emphasised the importance of accessing European funds, stating that the only way to maintain budgetary balance and a stable economy in Romania next year is through two measures: "reducing our expenses and accessing European funds. The most significant immediate support we can provide to the Romanian economy is to draw the 10 billion euros allocated under the PNRR component by August next year."
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