Ukraine parliament to consider amended 2015 budget at March 3 session

Ukraine’s parliamentary faction leaders stated on Feb. 23 that the amended 2015 state budget will be considered at the March 3 parliamentary session, the Interfax-Ukraine news agency reported. Earlier, the Cabinet of Ministers suggested that parliament conduct an extraordinary session on Feb. 26.

The Self-Reliance parliamentary faction won’t support the amended 2015 budget if it doesn’t receive details on forming prices for natural gas and heat, said on Feb. 23 Oleh Bereziuk, the parliamentary faction head. The draft that the faction received doesn’t contain detailed calculations and explanations regarding the main expenses that are tied to gas prices, Bereziuk said.

The amended 2015 budget also contains incomplete estimates, such as revenue from the sale of 3G licenses, and doesn’t take into account debt owed to the state, such as debt for consumed energy owed by oligarchs estimated at UAH 2 bln, Bereziuk said.

Zenon Zawada: The amended 2015 budget will have enough votes for approval, even if it’s not adequate in preventing further economic deterioration this year, as we described. But certainly, those factions that have little to lose from not supporting it will attempt to reap political dividends from its harsh austerity measures and criticize it. The complaints enumerated by the Self-Reliance party on Feb. 23 are more or less constructive, but we expect the populists to lay on the drama at the session.