PM Kopacz promises three years work in one

PM Kopacz (bottom left) with Civic Platform front bench: photo - PAP

During her 'expose' speech to parliament, Ewa Kopacz, who has taken over from Donald Tusk as prime minister, said her minister of finance is to prepare a framework for new tax regulations by early 2015, while the economy minister would work on a new law on economic activity.

“What was planned to be achieved in three years’ time, my government will do in 12 months,” Kopacz said.

Poland will be holding a general election in 12 months time.

The new prime minister said the government would increase defence spending to 2 percent of GDP starting form 2016 and promised an additional 36 million zloty (8.6 million euro) for Polish soldiers starting from next year.

Kopacz also said that the minister of infrastructure and development would speed up work on Poland’s construction law, with the goal of making things simpler, especially when it comes to the construction of single-family houses.

She said her government would extend support to entrepreneurs.

State-owned lender BGK would expand its support programme to 25 billion zloty (about 6 billion euro). BGK’s credit guarantee system for SMEs will be extended until 2016 and will also include support for exporters.

Referring to the Russian embargo on Polish food, Kopacz said that her government would prepare a special anti-crisis law to support businesses affected by the ban. The plan is to spend 500 million zloty (some 120 million euro) on employment support for such companies.

“In Poland, coal is of strategic importance,” said the new PM. She said her government would work on laws that would protect the Polish mining sector from unfair competition. It would also work on increasing the industry’s profitability.

She also said that her government would push for an energy union and that it would not agree to EU regulations that would make energy more expensive for Poles. (kw/pg)

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