New statements from Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz on minimum wage and the 25 percent rent cap

Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz made statements regarding the agenda on TRT Haber.

Highlights from Yılmaz's statements are as follows:

A true humanitarian tragedy is unfolding in Gaza. One does not need to be Muslim or Palestinian to condemn and stop the events here. Even many Western countries have not performed well in this regard. We have seen countries that could not even say 'let there be a ceasefire' regarding these events. Those who remain silent on this will leave a black mark on their history. Our President is making an intense effort regarding this issue.

Turkey is fulfilling its historical responsibility. We are trying to stop this bloodshed; we are saying let there be a ceasefire. A ceasefire is not enough; we want lasting peace. Peace can only be achieved with the formation of an independent Palestinian state.

At the same time, we are providing humanitarian aid. We are sending aid by plane, both through our bilateral relations and via Egypt. We have also taken important initiatives, such as bringing patients from there to our country.

"ECONOMY IS OUR TOP AGENDA ITEM"

These 6 months have been very intense. The priorities of our governments have always coincided with the priorities of our nation. The economy is our top agenda item. We experienced a major earthquake in February; with all of this, the economy has become even more important.

Despite the earthquake, we managed to keep budget deficits at a reasonable level. On the other hand, our Central Bank has achieved a significant increase in reserves. There was a 44 percent increase in reserves. There is a 707 billion lira decrease in KKM (FX-protected deposit accounts), and this trend continues.

"SURPASSING THE 1 TRILLION THRESHOLD IN DOLLAR TERMS FOR THE FIRST TIME"

We see that the flow of funds from abroad to Turkey has also increased recently with all these steps taken. The investment environment in Turkey has now become positive. The Century of Turkey will be the century of investments. Our national income is surpassing the 1 trillion threshold in dollar terms for the first time in history.

"A DECLINE IN ANNUAL INFLATION WILL BE SEEN IN 2024"

Turkey has been very successful in the real economy and growth. We aim to sustain the success we have achieved in the real sector by reducing inflation. Our problem is inflation. Therefore, the fight against inflation has become our most important item. A decline in annual inflation will be seen in 2024. Inflation will be 15 percent in 2025 and single digits in 2026.

EXORBITANT HOUSING AND RENT

We have seen a significant price drop in the automotive sector. Housing prices and rents have also lost their former momentum, but they are not yet at the level we want. We are striving for them to come down further.

Supply-side policies are important regarding housing. First of all, we need to increase housing supply. One of our most important steps recently is urban transformation. While controlling demand on one hand, we are striving to permanently lower housing prices and rents with policies that increase supply on the other.

WILL THE 25 PERCENT RENT CAP CONTINUE?

The 25 percent cap on rent was a measure we took to protect the tenant during a period of high inflation. Therefore, as inflation falls, we will no longer need such measures.

URBAN TRANSFORMATION

We are transferring additional resources from the budget to TOKİ for social housing. We will spend 3 trillion liras for earthquake rehabilitation; we will overcome this burden together.

We will largely recover the earthquake zone next year.

We established the Urban Transformation Presidency. There are 3 directorates under it. One is the Marmara region directorate, the second is the directorate for all of Turkey, and the third is the directorate for the financial part.

HOW MUCH WILL THE MINIMUM WAGE BE?

There were two important developments regarding the minimum wage last year. We increased the minimum wage by 107 percent last year. With a historic decision, we exempted the minimum wage from taxes.

Now a new negotiation has begun. There are 3 parties here. It is necessary to ensure the balance between businesses and employees. Therefore, we think we will determine this within a balance.

Our main goal has been not to let employees be crushed by inflation.

THERE WILL BE AN INCREASE OF AROUND 50 PERCENT

There will be an increase of around 50 percent for civil servants and civil servant retirees. Worker retirees are subject to different conditions.

We will adopt an approach that protects the balance between different retiree segments and especially considers those who receive lower amounts."