State Aid – Basis of Government Anti-Crisis Plan
The State Duma has approved as a basis of the anti-crisis plan proposed by the government. According to the plan, in the near future the government is going to focus on the fact that in addition to the implementation of the anti-crisis measures themselves, it should fully meet its social obligations to the citizens.
The plan was extensively discussed in the course of its preparation. Amendments and proposals to it were made not only by deputies and government agencies, but also by the business community and public organizations. The discussions and amendments covered several blocks of issues, some of which were included in the final document.
Judging by the number of amendments, the most acute problem for both the government and the public is the development of the pension system. As a result the anticrisis plan included the clause about the full financing of already taken decisions about the increase of pensions. The general pension system will be modernized in order to create stable sources of financing for it.
The second important problem also from the social block is the fight against unemployment, the creation of new jobs. The measures of the economic block were focused on the discussion of the scheme for direct support of industrial enterprises. Herewith it was specifically pointed out that only the companies who had prepared the programs of efficient work under the crisis can count on the government support.
As a result the document approved by the State Duma included the basic measures which, according to the authors, if implemented, would help Russia emerge from the crisis with minimal losses.
The approved plan is being actively discussed by the experts, while the majority of serious analysts are quite critical of it. In their opinion, the plan is not specific, and it is not certain that the measures it envisages will give the expected economic effect. Experts are most concerned that the huge sums being injected into the companies will be wasted. This is because the plan makes no provision for mechanisms to control how the money the government allocates to businesses in distress is spent.
