Romanian Parl Moves Govt’s Conf Vote Request For Wed But Sets No-Confidence Motion Vote For Tues

„We’ve decided to postpone the Government’s request for a confidence vote on the pension bill for next Wednesday, when the Parliament’s standing offices will set a date,” the sources said.

The Parliament’s standing offices also decided Wednesday a no-confidence motion submitted by the opposition will be read out Thursday and debated and voted next Tuesday.

Romanian Prime Minister Emil Boc said Tuesday the government will seek a confidence vote in Parliament to enact and IMF-required pension law which will increase retirement age and eliminate special pensions, such as those of lawmakers, magistrates, military, law enforcement and intelligence services staff. Under the draft pension law, all special pensions will be integrated in the public system and will be recalculated depending on people’s contributions, which means they will be reduced.

The Government has pledged to reform its public pension system by December under an IMF-led EUR19.95 billion financial rescue package.

Boc said he is ready to put his job on the line and will resign if the pension bill doesn’t go through.

Also Tuesday, opposition liberals and the Hungarian minority party, backed by some social democrats, who left the coalition government last week, submitted a no-confidence motion to overthrow Boc’s minority democrat liberal government.