Head of Forecast Commission Ghizdeanu on draft law that suspends contributions to Pension Pillar II: "It was an error"

President of the National Commission of Strategy and Forecast Ion Ghizdeanu stated on Monday that the suspension of contributions to the Pension Pillar II is subject to investigation, hotnews.ro writes. Moreover, he said that the term of ‘suspension’ that was communicated is an error, while in fact the government referred to a period when taxpayers can opt for the Pension Pillar II.

“There are proposals to improve the mechanism and have talks, we are making internal analyses, there are more of them. We are not talking about suspension. There was a term there, an error; it is about options, of a period of opting what to do, what period which can be taken into account (…) It is an error we acknowledge that an unfinished internal project was left in,” Ghizdeanu said. He also added that the matter was being investigated to identify the person who released the information.

Minister of Labour Olguta Vasilescu stated on Sunday that the option to suspend contributions to the Pensions Pillar II is a “solution of the prognosis commission” she doesn’t agree with and which “will not become a reality.”

“It is a solution of the Commission of Prognosis, it was not transposed into a Government Ordinance. We do not agree with it. It will not become a reality, because it needs to reach us,” Vasilescu told broadcaster Antena 3.

The government program for 2018 includes, as a legal priority a draft law on the regulation of compulsory privately administered pensions, with the provision that between 1 July – 31 December the contributions will be suspended. According to the document, the social contributions “are integrally integrated in the budget,” with the suspension of contributions between 1 July and 31 December 2018.