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PM Marković at AmCham: Government's economic resul...
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PM Marković at AmCham: Government's economic results are impressive, we consider reducing tax burden on labour, increasing minimum wage
Published on: Mar 4, 2019 • 9:22 PM Author: PR Service
Nearly 11,000 new jobs opened
"The Montenegrin economy has grown at a rate of above 4.5% in two previous years. We do not have the final data yet because we are still waiting for information for the 4th quarter of 2018, but in 2017, the growth rate was 4.7%. in the first nine months of v2019, the economy grew by 4.9%, with the third quarter's growth of 5%, which was the third growth rate in Europe. Theremore, Montenegro, a small economy with so many challenges, achieved economic growth which is among the largest ones in Europe in these two years," the Prime Minister stressed answering questions at a meeting with business people sponsored by the American Chamber of Commerce in Montenegro.
The Prime Minister said that public finances were significantly improved. This is illustrated by the fact that in the first two months of this year, the revenue side was higher by 6%, or EUR 12.9 million. Nevertheless, the Prime Minister said, he is most pleased with the growth of employment, because almost 11,000 new jobs have been created over the past two years.
"I am looking forward to this information. On 20 February 2017, we had 52 thousand unemployed. On 26 February 2018, we had 47,593 unemployed, according to the Employment Bureau of Montenegro. And on 25 February 2019, we have 38,535 unemployed people," he underscored.
He added that in February 2017, the unemployment rate was 22.46%, and on 20 February 2019, it was 16.61%.
Prime Minister Marković concluded his presentation of Montenegro's economic activity with data on growth in tourism - 30% more tourists than in the same period last year, while financial revenues increased by 43%.
"The goal is to maintain this pace of development, attract new investments, create new jobs, reduce unemployment rate and, of course, achieve a higher standard of living," the Prime Minister underscored.
Fight against grey economy - there is no going back, there is only moving forward
Speaking about the fight against the gray economy, the Prime Minister said that a successful economic and financial policy came as a result of increased work of inspection services despite the lack of capacity.
"For that reason, I personally undertook coordination with the inspection services in combating the gray economy and the informal market. This gives results not only in numbers and indicators, but also in the creation of a new, motivational environment, where professionalism comes to the fore and where people understand how important it is for the future of Montenegro and its citizens," the Prime Minister underscored.
He also said that inspectors prefer to control companies that are doing business properly, saying that the focus must be placed on those who are doing business illegally.
"It is a process. I think we have made a decisive step forward, we can no longer go back, we can only move forward," the Prime Minister stated.
As to the tax policy and labour policy plans, the Government is reviewing complaints made by social partners with extreme sensitivity, PM Marković noted.
He also said that the Government is considering reducing or even abolishing the profit tax rate for those companies that reinvest their profits.
"We are considering reducing tax burden on labour. I think that we will come out very quickly with a concrete proposal. We are discussing it with our social partners. ... I believe that there will be an increase in the minimum wage, but also a reduction in the tax burden on labour that will relax employers, and increase the standard and salaries of employees," said Prime Minister Duško Marković.
Wild construction is problematic
The Prime Minister said that the results of the new legal solutions related to the protection of the area are tangible, especially regarding the simplification and disinflation of procedures, but added that better results are expected in the field as well.
"As far as I am concerned, the law does not mean anything if it does not completely lead to positive changes in the field. We have registered 50,000 informal facilities, that is, we have received so many requests for legalisation. Municipalities do not undertake anything to initiate the legalisation process, which is the revenue of municipalities. But we had to anticipate what the next move would be if the municipalities did not respond adequately. We do not see a proactive position of the State to respond to this stagnation. We need to find a quick solution to this problem," the Prime minister said.
He expressed his determination to stop the wild construction, but pointed to the need to involve the judiciary and local governments.
"This is the problem. We have space. We must guard this as a pupil of our own eye. I do not see that we have this effect," said Prime Minister Duško Marković.
Public administration is bulky and costly
Asked about the digitisation, PM Marković said that he believes that the state administration need to be reformed, rationalised and modernised more rapidly. The relevant laws are already in the Parliament and should be in force during this year, he added.
"Our public administration is bulky and expensive. We need to find the answer to that problem. We are actively working to find funds that will allow the reduction of the state administration," the Prime Minister said.
Asked about environmental protection, the Prime Minister noted that the opening of Chapter 27 is very important and that Montenegro cannot develop and be a viable economy if it does not invest efforts in environmental protection, stressing that this is one of the biggest challenges that will be tackled by this Government and the next one as well.
Speaking about the rule of law, the Prime Minister said that his data show that the perception of the American Chamber of Commerce is not the same or is not up to date, and that 57% of cases in all courts are completed within three months, and within 43 days before the Supreme Court.
PUBLIC RELATIONS SERVICE OF THE GOVERNMENT OF MONTENEGRO
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