The agenda includes the administration of the federal budget in the first quarter of 2020, draft federal laws, budgetary provisions.
Mikhail Mishustin’s opening remarks:
Government meeting
Government meeting
Government meeting
Good afternoon, colleagues.
At our Government meeting today I would like us to discuss the administration of the federal budget in the first quarter of 2020. Despite the spread of the coronavirus infection, the influence of external factors on our economy in the first quarter was moderate. But it would be wrong to discuss this not knowing the real picture of what happened towards the end of the quarter. The novel coronavirus has significantly changed both the economic environment and working conditions too. Therefore, we will be able to get a fuller picture when we sum up the results of the 2nd quarter.
We are continuing to support the ten most struggling Russian regions. For each of them, individual programmes of social and economic development for 2020-2024 were prepared taking into account the local specifics and possible growth points. At the previous meeting, the Government allocated funding for the implementation of such a programme in the Kurgan Region.
Today we will provide funding to the other nine regions. These are the republics of Altai, Tyva, Karelia, Mari El, Adygea, Kalmykia, Chuvashia, as well as the Altai Territory and Pskov Region. Over 26 billion roubles will be allocated from the federal budget for the implementation of all of these regional programmes over a period of the next three years. The money will go towards the development of the social, transport and utility infrastructure, supporting agriculture and related industries, construction of new production facilities, the modernisation of the housing and utilities sector, and many others things. This will make it possible to create new jobs and provide stable incomes for the people. I would like to ask the ministers who supervise these programmes to constantly monitor their implementation.
Today we will also discuss increasing subsidies to the regions for monthly payments to low-income families with children aged between 3 and 7. The 2020 federal budget provides some 105 billion roubles for this purpose. We will allocate over 12.5 billion roubles to the 19 regions that require additional funding.
We will also review draft amendments to the Labour Code that were prepared at the instruction of the President. They enable the Government to set requirements for remuneration systems in state-run and municipal institutions. These powers will allow for preventing unjust inequality in the wages of employees at comparable positions. First of all, this relates to healthcare, and if necessary, other budget-funded sectors as well. This will also help make the remuneration system more transparent. People should understand clearly what they are paid for and how much, and be sure that their incomes will grow.
We continue to support medical personnel and other experts who are engaged in the treatment of coronavirus patients. The Government has allocated additional funds for extra payment to medical personnel, ambulance drivers and other experts engaged in this important work that were endorsed by the President. Today we will distribute over 755 million roubles from this sum to ten Russian regions.
Another 3.8 billion roubles will go to 46 regions for federal incentives set by the Government to doctors, nurses and attendants.
I would just like to draw the attention of all the heads of regions and medical institutions that all these payments must be done on time and in full.
In addition to this, the Government will allocate an additional 15 billion roubles to the Russian Technological Development Fund. In accordance with a draft Government instruction that we will discuss today, this money will go to support advanced Russian developments, first of all, new high-tech and competitive products. It will allow for increasing the export potential of Russian enterprises and localise the manufacturing of high-tech products in Russia.
State support will also be provided to projects aimed at counteracting the spread of the coronavirus. First of all, this implies increasing the production of equipment and everything needed for the diagnosis, prevention and treatment of dangerous diseases, including medicines and medical goods.
Another issue on today’s agenda is the support of federal educational, science and healthcare institutions affected by the pandemic. We will provide financial assistance to such institutions from the Government’s Reserve Fund in the amount of some 16 billion roubles. This sum will compensate for the dropping incomes of federal educational, scientific and healthcare facilities and, most importantly, will provide for paying wages to the personnel.
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