The government leader in Congress, senator Randolfe Rodrigues (PT-BA), stated this Friday (8) that the stuck public spending cut package to comply with the rules of the fiscal framework will not affect the “acquired rights” of Brazilians.
Among these rights, he said, are Bolsa Família, unemployment insurance and the Continuous Payment Benefit (BPC) – the latter two in the economic team’s sights as they have soared since last year. Just the .
“The necessary margin that the economic team is requesting to comply with the fiscal framework, the zero deficit target, and the support of what was approved by Congress forwarded by the Lula government will be guaranteed”, Randolfe pointed out in an interview with GloboNews in the morning.
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According to him, resistance from ministers in the social area is natural due to what Lula constantly takes on these expenses. This is an impasse that has been dragging on for weeks and has even led to the threat of some people leaving the Esplanada if their portfolios are cut.
mainly with the ministers who will be directly affected by the economic team’s proposal: Camilo Santana (Education), Luiz Marinho (Labour) and Nísia Trindade (Health). Carlos Lupi (Pension) is not yet confirmed – he threatened to resign if his ministry joins the cuts package.
According to Randolfe, all options are on the table for discussion, including sectoral funds for health and education, and except for “acquired rights”. These, however, will undergo adjustments to discover reasons that led to the surge in concessions.
Government wants to cut parliamentary amendments
Randolfe Rodrigues also said he agreed with the president about expanding the treasury beyond Executive spending, to reduce the impact on the social area. For him, Congress also needs to contribute.
“It is not reasonable for us to debate social benefits that need adjustments [como a disparada do seguro-desemprego mesmo com o aumento das contratações]contingency or block, and not also block other expenses that are in the Budget, such as parliamentary amendments. It’s a debate we have to have with Congress. The fiscal effort is not just from the Executive, it is from all powers”, he highlighted.
In an interview this week, Lula questioned “if I make a spending cut to reduce the Budget’s investment capacity, the question I ask is the following: will Congress agree to reduce the amendments from deputies and senators to contribute to the adjustment tax that I’m going to do.”
The government leader in Congress stated that the bill that gives transparency to parliamentary amendments, which is now in the Senate to be voted on next Tuesday (12), will have an amendment that allows for blocking of resources when necessary, and not just contingency.
This, he says, is necessary so that the burden of blocking the Budget does not rest solely on the government. This point should generate discussions and will then have to be analyzed again by the Chamber.
There will also be an analysis by the Federal Supreme Court (STF) to verify whether the law meets the determination of Minister Flávio Dino, who blocked the amendments until Congress voted on a project giving more transparency to the allocation of resources.
“In order to comply with what is said in the Constitution: the amendments must comply with the principles of traceability and transparency, and that the same thing that happens through a discretionary act of the Executive with all budget expenses can also happen with parliamentary amendments ”, he pointed out.
Randolfe Rodrigues stated that, after reaching a consensus among ministers on the cuts, the economic team will first talk to government leaders in Congress and, after that, forward the proposals that will be analyzed. In parallel, Lula must also speak with presidents Arthur Lira (PP-AL), of the Chamber, and Rodrigo Pacheco (PSD-MG), of the Senate.
