Vice President Yılmaz announces: Will there be public sector austerity?

Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz answered questions from members of the press following the Cabinet Meeting held at the Presidential Complex.

Stating that before the election, there was a lot of speculation in the economy, particularly in the foreign exchange market, based on non-data-driven news, and that the public was misled, Yılmaz said that the exact opposite of these speculations occurred after the election, that their normal programs are continuing more decisively and strongly, and that the Central Bank has accumulated a significant amount of reserves during this process.

"THIS FRAMEWORK IS IN THE MTP"

Yılmaz stated that a period of nearly 4 years without elections has begun, and that this is a major window of opportunity, continuing as follows:

"This environment offers an opportunity for us to focus on medium and long-term issues. Turkey is also at a threshold; we are a country in the upper-middle-income group, and we are on the threshold of transitioning to the league of high-income countries. This is something that can be achieved through certain structural transformations, increasing productivity in industry, increasing competitiveness, digitalization, and green transformation. On the other hand, it has many dimensions, such as a much more efficiently functioning public administration system, and further simplifying and streamlining the bureaucracy. This framework is actually in the Medium-Term Program (MTP). Therefore, we will implement this gradually as the work matures, with appropriate timing."

Vice President Yılmaz stated that the agenda of most of the upcoming Economic Coordination Council meetings will be related to increasing efficiency in the public sector, austerity, and more effective prioritization, primarily focusing on structural transformations.

WILL THERE BE PUBLIC SECTOR AUSTERITY?

Yılmaz responded as follows to the question regarding whether "an agenda is being discussed about introducing a 15-item austerity package":

"Regarding public sector austerity, our Ministry of Treasury and Finance is conducting a study on one hand, and our Strategy and Budget Directorate is carrying out a serious effort on the other. It is not 15, but a much higher number of items. We will consolidate all of these, pass them through a certain filter, and put them into practice. Public sector austerity is a very high priority for us. But the essence of austerity also includes prioritization, focusing, and increasing efficiency; in other words, when we say austerity, besides reducing expenditures, there are also dimensions of making existing expenditures more efficient, prioritizing them, and making them contribute more to the competitiveness, productivity, and social welfare of the economy."

Stating that significant progress has been made in the work towards this, Yılmaz said that they would finalize the work together with other relevant institutions after the foreign program of Minister of Treasury and Finance Mehmet Şimşek.

Vice President Yılmaz responded to the question regarding "why a law is needed for austerity" by saying, "There are issues that require a law, as well as things that can be done without one. Depending on the subject, there are things to be done by circular, and things to be done by administrative decision. There are things that will be done through implementation. Of course, there may also be parts that require legislation."

News Source: AA