Public debt could exceed 100% of GDP. Hossu: "Severe impoverishment of the population"

Romania's public debt is currently approaching 62% of Gross Domestic Product, but could potentially exceed 100%, warns Bogdan Hossu, the trade union leader of Cartel Alfa. According to him, the absence of a functioning Government risks plunging the country into a new political crisis, with severe consequences for the population, reports Realitatea PLUS.

Hossu argues that, without swift decisions, people's incomes could remain frozen whilst pressure on the economy continues to mount.

The new public sector pay law

The Cartel Alfa leader stated that trade union organisations are prepared to enter into negotiations immediately regarding a new public sector pay law. He insists that the base of the pay system must be equal to the national minimum wage:

"With regard to the public sector pay law, all trade union institutions have expressed their willingness to enter into swift and, we hope, productive negotiations, in order to finalise a new pay law as quickly as possible. But what the new political decision-makers must understand is that the base must be equal to the national minimum wage."

The risk of a new political crisis

Bogdan Hossu warns that, in the absence of a Government and dialogue partners, the country risks entering a period of heightened political instability:

"There is no one to talk to. Neither from the Government's perspective nor from that of the presidential administration, which has set itself a deadline — we hope it will meet it accordingly. Otherwise, we will enter into a new political crisis with serious consequences, very serious ones I would say, because there are several crises that we have in fact been enduring for some time now, such as the energy, fuel, and gas crisis, which will have an impact on both energy supply and day-to-day functioning."

The warning about the impoverishment of the population

According to Hossu, issues related to energy, fuel, and gas could compound political instability, worsening the financial situation of the population:

"It will be a harsh winter, at least that is what the meteorologists are forecasting, which, from a pragmatic standpoint, means an even greater pauperisation and severe impoverishment of the population."

The trade union leader emphasises that the lack of swift political decisions, combined with the persistence of current economic imbalances, could amplify the hardships already being felt by the population.