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Stanek: Government's Plans to Squeeze Deficit Under 3% Unrealistic
Wednesday 24 November 2010 Zoom in | Print page
Bratislava, November 24 (TASR) - The Slovak Government's resolve to squeeze the state deficit under 3 percent of GDP by 2013 is unrealistic, Slovak Academy of Sciences (SAV) economist Peter Stanek said at the 'Marcroeconomics by New Rules' conference in Bratislava on Wednesday.
"The years 2011 and 2012 won't bring recovery of the budgetary balance – quite the contrary. Package No. 2 and No. 3 will follow the first austerity package [that has already been revealed for 2011]. The package No. 4 won't come, however, because it would fall on the election year, which will be a bountiful year ... to be preceded by further austerity," predicted Stanek.
The SAV economist (a senior economic policy advisor to the Fico government 2006-2010 and more highly ranked in the last Vladimir Meciar government up to 1998), pointed to the indebtedness of Slovakia's healthcare, municipalities and other aspects of the public sector. He highlighted the fact that due to the rising life expectancy, people on average will live up to 20 years after retiring – putting a burden on the state-run social insurer Socialna Poistovna.
The Finance Ministry described Stanek's views as politically biased, given the fact that he was an advisor for former premier Robert Fico (Smer-SD). "For us more relevant is the opinion of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which stated ... that the Government has appropriately set the pace and method of reducing the deficit," said Finance Ministry spokesman Martin Jaros.
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