Finance Minister Fernando Haddad again defended the government’s commitment to the fiscal target and the framework that limits the growth of public expenses. In an interview with GloboNews This Friday (27), he said that any proposal to increase spending, outside the “indispensable” cases, causes him “hives”.
“In the fiscal situation that Brazil is, increased spending to me already causes hives, unless it is essential,” said Haddad, commenting rumors about proposals that would raise the mandatory expenses.
The minister stressed that the biggest challenge to maintain the new fiscal regime standing is the advance of mandatory expenses above the 2.5% ceiling set for the actual growth of expenses. This, according to him, compresses discretionary spending – such as investments and costing – and requires additional effort to ensure budget space.
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“The increase in expense has a ceiling. But it has parts of the budget that is growing above 2.5%. This means that discretionary expense will be compressed by what is mandatory,” he explained.
Haddad reaffirmed that the government does not intend to change the target of primary result after similar resistances last year. “I went through a whole, saying that I wasn’t going to change the goal to 2024. No one believed. And we met the goal,” he said.
He countered criticism and recalled wrong predictions made previously about the dollar and other economic indicators. “What’s the point of being six months good with the financial market if you then destroy your reputation? I am a person who is imbued with a purpose,” he said.
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The minister also drew attention to distortions in programs such as insurance and the continued benefit (BPC), which have been pressing on mandatory expenses. Quoting the case of insurance, Haddad stated that there are more than 1.9 million requirements, while the estimated number of artisanal fishermen is about 300,000.
Haddad also criticized the difficulty of moving forward with structural proposals in Congress, such as the reform of the military’s social security and the regulation of the BPC. “If I can’t approve of this dozen initiatives that will generate $ 20 billion, how are we going to deal with more delicate topics such as health and education?” He asked.
He proposed a pact with party leaders to transparently discuss primary spending. “We will have a meeting on primary spending. A global arrangement with everyone sitting at the table, including opposition,” he suggested.
