PM: Fall in GDP won't disturb us, fiscal consolidation to go on

Prime Minister Zoran Milanovic on Wednesday assessed that he could not be satisfied with the latest figures issued by the Bureau of Statistics (DZS) on a fall in the economy of 1.5% in Q1 and announced the continuation of fiscal consolidation.

The economy is continuing to fall and we cannot be satisfied, we have to continue with the job we started and we will not be perturbed in this regardless of the pressure. Therefore, fiscal consolidation will continue, we cannot spend more than we have, we cannot go further into debt. That simply does not hold water, Milanovic said opening the cabinet session.

DZS on Wednesday reported that initial indicators show that Gross Domestic Product in Q1 fell by 1.5% year on year which is the sixth consecutive quarter in which the economy continued to weaken.

That's less of a drop than recorded in Q4 last year when GDP slid 2.3% but greater than expected as economists had told Hina, who on an average forecasted a drop of 1.2%.

Milanovic rejected criticisms and comments by unions who claim that the government has said that employees in the public sector are bludgers.

"That's not true and no-one in the government thinks that way, what is more, no-one would ever say something like that and please let's not make up stories", he said.

He underscored that the majority of the government consisted of people who had come from the public sector.

"We worked for a wage, we are not landowners or tycoons nor do we own financial capital. We very well understand that world and are sensitive towards its", Milanovic said.

"As such, doctors, teachers, professors and the rest are useful people in society but at the moment we simply don't have the 2 billion kuna" required and we will not further go into debt, the PM concluded.

(Hina)



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