Pălărie asks the CSM to urgently give its opinion on the reform of magistrates' pensions: they are withdrawing from the system with double incomes compared to the national average
Magistrates' pensions return to the center of the political debate. USR accuses delays, and the Government has a deadline of November 28 to adopt the reform required by the PNRR benchmarks. Romania risks losing the 231 million euros if the law does not advance.
Ștefan Pălărie, the leader of USR senators. Photo: Facebook
The project on magistrates' pensions continues to generate strong reactions in Parliament. USR Senator Ștefan Pălărie says that the discussion about political interference in justice has no basis, because the average pension with which magistrates leave the system remains twice as high as the average pension of Romanians. He states that the current draft corrects the temptation of early retirements by the fact that the value of the pension will become lower than the salary in payment.
The senator asks the representatives of the Superior Council of Magistracy to quickly issue the necessary opinion. Ștefan Pălărie says that the law was publicly debated, went through political consultations and includes agreed transition periods to avoid imbalances. His message is that the project solves old system problems and closes the discussion about artificial incentives for early retirement.
He recalled tensions in Parliament the previous year, when pension reform drew criticism over the coalition's handling of social inequities. He also mentioned the fact that some changes risk creating differences between retirees from certain work groups, precisely because of the unclear wording in the Government's initial draft.
USR says that the objective remains the rapid adoption of the law, so that the Magistrates' Pensions and the Government Reform respect the commitments made through the PNRR Milestones and allow Romania to collect the allocated European funds.
PNRR milestones and the deadline for Government Reform
The Romanian government is entering the most tense week this year for the reform of judicial pensions. The executive must adopt the project by November 28, the final deadline set by the PNRR Milestones. If the reform does not advance on time, Romania may lose 231 million euros intended for the magistrates' pension system.
The Minister of European Funds, Dragoș Pîslaru, says that the deadlines in the PNRR do not allow for extensions. The government must urgently close the procedure. President Nicușor Dan states that there could be a technical margin of flexibility, but only if Romania shows clear progress in the legislative process and if the CSM's opinion enters the decision-making circuit on time.
The executive is waiting for the opinion of the Superior Council of Magistracy. The General Assemblies of the courts and prosecutor's offices are held this week. After centralizing the opinions, the SCM Plenary must issue the institutional opinion. Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan says that the Government is ready to take responsibility in Parliament on Thursday or Friday.
The project published in decisional transparency stipulates that the pension will be 55% of the average of the gross allowances of the last five years, with a ceiling of 70% of the last net allowance. The Government's reform also introduces a transition period of 15 years until reaching the age of 65 for retirement. Magistrates will still need 25 years of seniority, of which a maximum of 10 can come from other legal professions.
The previous project was rejected by the Constitutional Court because it did not have the opinion of the CSM. The executive says he wants to avoid a repeat of the situation and wants a full legislative process. All stages must be completed by November 28 for the European funding to be saved.
