Reform Watch
OP-ED
VoxUkraine: Proposed 2015 budget moves Ukraine in wrong direction
Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk (R) gestures as he speaks with Ukrainian Finance Minister Natalia Jaresko during a parliament session in Kiev on December 23, 2014. Ukraine took a historic step toward NATO in a parliamentary vote that stoked Russia's anger ahead of talks on ending the ex-Soviet state's separatist war. Lawmakers in the government-controlled chamber overwhelmingly adopted a bill dropping Ukraine's non-aligned status -- a classification given to states such as Switzerland that refuse to join military alliances and thus play no part in wars. AFP PHOTO/GENYA SAVILOV
The role of state is set to rise, directly contrary to what has been promised in the government action plan just two weeks ago: reduction of budget expenditures by 10 percent of GDP in 2015-2016. This means that the government’s first action is to go back on its promise! This severely damages the credibility of the new government, weakens its capacity to lead the country out of the crisis, and strengthens the importance of the parliament.
