Romanian MPs End Talks On Ctrl Bk’s Board, Liberals Decline To Sign

The liberals are discontent they are not allowed to nominate more than one member in the central bank’s Board, democrat liberal Mircea Toader said.

Based on an algorithm that considers the number of seats in Parliament, the two ruling parties – the Social Democratic Party (PSD) and the Democrat Liberal Party (PDL) – are allowed to nominate three members in the central bank’s Board each.

The National Liberal Party (PNL) and the Democratic Union of Hungarians in Romania (UDMR) can nominate one member each, Toader said.

Under the agreement signed by three of the four parties, the central bank’s prime deputy governor will be named by PSD, while PDL will nominate the other two executive positions in the Board.

All parties have agreed to name Mugur Isarescu for a new mandate at the central bank’s helm.

Also, the social democrats announced they will vote for a mandate extension of Florin Georgescu as the central bank’s prime deputy governor.

The two chambers of the Parliament decided Monday to give the budget committees a 10-day period to decide on the parties’ nominees for the central bank’s Board, to make the necessary hearings and to draw up a report.

On Wednesday, the MPs suspended negotiations, as the liberals and democrat liberals disagreed on the deputy governor positions.

The existing mandate of the central bank’s Board expires end September. The Board members were appointed by the Parliament in September 2004. At that time, the lawmakers also decided to reduce the mandate duration of the Board members from six to five years.

People familiar with the talks told MEDIAFAX the liberal democrats may nominate Lucian Croitoru, Cristian Popa and Virgiliu Stoenescu, while the social democrats will maintain Florin Georgescu and nominate former BCR president Nicolae Danila and Marin Dinu, the dean of the Faculty of Economics within the Bucharest Academy of Economic Studies, as members.

UDMR will keep Agnes Nagy, while the liberals have yet to decide on their nomination. Former finance minister, economist Daniel Daianu, is one of the names floated as the liberal’s choice.