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Romanian Social Democrats, Conservatives To File Motion On Agriculture In Lower Chamber

Romanian Social Democratic Party MP Victor Surdu and Conservative Party president Dan Constantin announced Wednesday that the two parties will submit a simple motion on agriculture in the Chamber of Deputies.
Romanian Social Democrats, Conservatives To File Motion On Agriculture In Lower Chamber
Nicoleta Nicolae
01 sept. 2010, 15:40, English

The signatories are calling for the resignation of Agriculture Minister Mihail Dumitru.

The motion says the Government has not given farmers any real assistance in the past year. As a result, according to the two parties, more than 2.4 million tons of wheat were lost, especially because of underfinancing and the failure to provide compensation in case of natural disasters. Losses were also reported in the production of rapeseed, sunflower and corn, as well as in the vegetable sector.

Surdu accused the Ministry of Agriculture of inefficiency in attracting European funds, arguing that only 16% of funds had been absorbed.

Constantin said the Ministry issued an order reorganizing the Agency for Agriculture Payments and Intervention (APIA), which „endangers this institution’s operation and agricultural policies.”

Surdu estimated the sector’s losses in 2010 at more than EUR1.5 billion and forecast that the poor harvest will lead to an import of about 1.2 million tons of wheat in 2011, leading to higher prices for bread.

Apart from the minister’s resignation, the signatories request allotting the Agriculture Ministry a budget of at least 1 billion lei (EUR1=4.2636), to pay its debts to farmers.