Minister Suker: Ministries Saving 2 Billion Kuna

The total savings with public companies is four billion, or half needed to balance the budget.

ZAGREB, CROATIA - “Throughout my life I was always an optimist, so I am now” said Ivan Suker, the Minister of Finance at today’s press conference, where together with cabinet vice-presidents Jadranka Kosor and Damir Polancec they announced the savings plans in the ministries.

He stressed that this is the end of the first round of talks with the ministries, when reducing operating costs in concerned, and that the total savings that they managed to plan in a week was 2,083,055 kuna, or 1.64 percent. Along with the two billion saved from public companies, there is a total of 4 billion kuna of savings.

In the budget rebalance the cabinet will keep the current projections of -2% economic growth, which is the same as the prognoses for the countries that are Croatia’s most important partners. The same predictions are in Italy, and the powerful Japan will have economic growth of -4%, says Suker.

Of course these are only projections, and everything depends on how the tourist season is” stressed Suker.

Savings according to ministry:

- Ministry of Defence - 545 million kuna
- Ministry of Heath - 500 million kuna
- Ministry Transport and Communications - 275 million kuna
- Ministry of Rural Development - 160 million kuna
- Ministry of Finance - 132 million kuna
- Ministry of Agriculture - 102 million kuna
- Ministry of Internal Affairs - 100 million kuna
- Ministry of Science - 62 million kuna
- Ministry of Environmental Protection - 52 million kuna
- Ministry of Veterans’ Affairs - 42 million kuna
- Ministry of Justice - 35 million kuna.

The cabinet will also save 15 million kuna, and the parliament and president’s office will save 7 and 1.44 million kuna respectively.

The press conference was called urgently, partly because of Damir Polancec’s statements saying that there will be popular and unpopular measures to increase budget income, by increasing duties, increasing fuel prices and SMS messages, and increasing the GST.

The press conference was opened by Jadranka Kosor, who denied his statements:

“That absolutely is not the stance of the cabinet. This was mentioned at the economic council, but the cabinet has not accepted it”.