Marlena Maląg – Minister of Family and Social Policy, Vice-President of the Social Dialogue Council took part in the plenary session of the Council, which was devoted to the discussion on the State’s Long-Term Financial Plan.

The meeting took place on May 8, 2023 at the Dialog Center for Social Partnership. The meeting was attended by Magdalena Rzeczkowska – Minister of Finance, Piotr Patkowski – Undersecretary of State in the Ministry of Finance, Piotr Pyzik – Undersecretary of State in the Ministry of State Assets, Piotr Bromber – Undersecretary of State in the Ministry of Health and Kamila Król – Undersecretary of State in the Ministry of Development and Technology.

The Minister of Finance – Magdalena Rzeczkowska presented information on the Long-Term State Financial Plan (WPFP). She informed that the Convergence Program is the main element of the WPFP. Update 2023 (APK). The program presents a medium-term scenario of Poland’s economic situation and its public finances until 2026. The adopted scenario assumes that in 2023 the rate of economic growth in Poland will slow down and real GDP will increase by 0.9%. In the years 2024-26, the economy will recover – the GDP growth rate will be 2.8%, 3.2% and 3.0%, respectively. She indicated that in the following months inflation will gradually decrease to a single-digit level at the end of 2023, and in annual terms it will amount to 12.0%. In the following years, inflation will continue to fall, but the rate of decline will be slightly slower.

Moreover, she informed that Poland remains a country with a very low unemployment rate. It is estimated that the unemployment rate according to LFS in 2023 will only slightly increase to 3.2% in 2023 due to the economic downturn. In the following years, unemployment will remain at a low level (approx. 3.0%).

In the further part of her statement, she mentioned that in 2023 the expenditure of the general government sector will be at the level of 46.6% of GDP, and in the following years the expenditure of the sector will decrease to reach 43.8% of GDP in 2026. The macro-fiscal scenario assumes that in 2023-2026 the debt of the sector will increase from 50.5% of GDP to 55.4% of GDP. The projected increase in debt, despite the decrease in the deficit, will mainly result from the pre-financing of military equipment purchases, which Poland significantly increased in the face of Russian aggression against Ukraine.

Speaking in the discussion, Minister Marlena Maląg announced that the government constantly supports Polish families and the Polish economy. She noted that despite the difficult times and the ongoing war in Ukraine, the government makes every effort to ensure that Poland develops dynamically both in the economic aspect and in terms of investing in human capital. Minister M. Malag also mentioned the support of seniors and pension benefits. She informed that the 13th pension is a benefit that has been adopted by law and paid on a permanent basis since 2019. Referring to the 14th pension, she pointed out that the draft act has already been published on the website of the Government Legislation Centre.

Jacek Męcina – Chairman of the Team for Budget, Remuneration and Social Benefits presented information on the course of the discussion on the State’s Long-Term Financial Plan. He informed that on the Team’s forum, the side of the employees and the side of the employers failed to develop a common position on the submitted document.

This was followed by a discussion with the social partners. The social side drew attention to the need to start a discussion on changing the model of shaping salaries in the state budget sector. In addition, attention was paid to the issue of pension benefits in connection with high inflation and consideration of their double indexation during the year. Continuation of protective measures in connection with the increase in energy prices and providing assistance to energy-intensive enterprises was indicated. The issue of the lack of funds from KPO and the possibility of spending these funds on investments until 2026 was raised. Attention was also drawn to Poland’s debt, which is expected to increase over the decade to a dangerous level of 70 percent. GDP. The issue of the minimum wage was raised.

Source:https://www.gov.pl/web/dialog/powiedzenie-plenarn-rady-dialogu-spoleczny23

Projekt otrzymał dofinansowanie z Norwegii poprzez Fundusze Norweskie 2014-2021, w ramach programu „Dialog społeczny – godna praca”.