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| THE WEEK IN REVIEW 10-16/03/2008 |
| (2008-03-14) |
| Last updated: 2008-03-20 9:53 EET |
In Brussels, the 27 EU leaders attended the two-day European spring Council. The summit, traditionally dealing with economic issues, focused on climate change and energy security. Romania was represented by president Traian Basescu and Prime Minister Calin Popescu Tariceanu. Heads of state and government debated a report on the negative effects of climate change on Europe and reached an agreement on a more pronounced reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. It is an ambitious plan, providing for a 20% cut in carbon dioxide emissions by 2020, as compared to the level in the 1990s. Special attention was paid to the launch of the second cycle of the Lisbon Strategy for the 2008-2010 period, as well as to such topical international issues as the situation in Kosovo, the Middle East and Afghanistan.
Romania’s Constitutional Court has decided that the notification regarding the supposed unconstitutional character of the uninominal electoral law forwarded by the Greater Romania Party and the Conservative Party is groundless. In the wake of this ruling, president Traian Basescu has promulgated the law. The Pro-Democracy Association that 13 years ago initiated the reform of the electoral system has expressed satisfaction at the completion of the legislative process regarding the enforcement of the uninominal voting system. The promulgated law is based on the variant proposed by the Pro-Democracy Association and provides for the deputies and senators to be elected in uninominal colleges. There is also an algorithm establishing the number of parliamentary seats to be assigned to a party depending on the number of votes it gets. A deputy represents 70,000 inhabitants and a senator 160,000. The law also provides for a 5% threshold which political parties need to meet in order to enter Parliament, and an 8-10% threshold for political alliances, depending on the number of components in the alliance. The law will first be enforced at the local elections, scheduled to take place on June 1st and 15th; the presidents of county councils will be elected by uninominal vote, just like the MPs in the parliamentary elections due this autumn.
The controversial first registration fee for cars has stirred more disputes. President Traian Basescu has sent a letter to Prime Minister Calin Popescu Tariceanu asking him to cancel the fee through an emergency ordinance and accuses the Prime Minister of disregarding Romanians by applying such measures. The prime minister has replied that president Basescu is in search of cheap votes and that the first registration fee aims at providing Romanians with a few essential elements, such as road safety, avoiding the transformation of the country into a scrap yard for second-hand cars from Europe, and encouraging investments. The Romanian minister of economy and finance Varujan Vosganian has made it clear that the law will be drafted again, in keeping with the European norms and the tax levels will be reduced by between 30 and 40 percent, the funds being channeled toward environmental protection. Let us also recall that, dissatisfied with their wages, trade unionists at the Dacia car plant in Pitesti, Southern Romania, a branch of the French Renault company, called a token strike after the negotiations with the employers’ association broke down. Protesters say that if next week’s talks do not yield the expected results, an all-out strike will be imminent. The protest took place just a few days after the Renault Plant successfully launched the Sandero model. Moreover, in the first two months of the year, the sale of Dacia cars increased by over 62%.
Last year, wages exceeded labour productivity, according to the National Institute of Statistics, which recommends that the government temper pay rises. The Institute’s analysis also indicates that the biggest increases in salaries were reported in constructions, commerce and hotel services, as well as transportation and telecommunications, while wages in agriculture dropped significantly. More details from Vergil Voineagu, president of the Institute.
“In 2007, productivity dropped by nearly 17% as compared to 2006, in the wake of a roughly 25% reduction of vegetal production and a nearly 4% fall in animal production.”
According to the information supplied by the National Institute of Statistics, in 2007, the economic growth rate stood at 6%, by nearly 2% lower than that in 2006.
Romanian worker Costel Busuioc won the final of the music competition “Hijos de Babel”, run by the Spanish public Television station. After eight weeks of competition, alongside other immigrants living in Spain, Costel Busuioc was awarded first place this week, after performing an aria from the opera “La Traviata” by Verdi and then the aria “Nessun Dorma” from the opera Turandot by Puccini. This success won Costel Busuioc a record deal with a major label and the opportunity to receive professional voice coaching.
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