PNL asks PSD to respect the political agreement: “Amendments to the budget must be discussed within the Coalition, not negotiated behind the scenes or imposed by surprise votes in Parliament”
Before the vote on the budget, the tensions in the governing coalition come to the surface again. The Liberals ask the Social Democrats to respect the rules set out in the political agreement and remind them that any changes to the budget cannot be negotiated outside the Coalition.
Tensions between PSD and PNL before the vote on the budget. PHOTO: webp
In the context of the PSD leadership meeting on Sunday, from 4:00 p.m., in the National Political Council to establish the party's strategy before the Parliament vote on the state budget for 2026, the National Liberal Party sent a public warning to its governing partners.
In a statement sent on Sunday, March 15, the liberals emphasize that any change to the budget draft must be discussed and agreed within the Coalition and that major decisions cannot be made through informal negotiations.
“Amendments to the budget must be discussed within the Coalition and assumed by the Government supported by the parliamentary majority, not negotiated behind the scenes or imposed by surprise votes in Parliament”, shows PNL.
Liberals warn that Romania is in a sensitive fiscal moment and that the budget debate should not be turned into a tool for political confrontation, especially since the country ended 2024 with one of the largest budget deficits in recent years, and the consequences are already being felt through pressure on the state budget and higher costs for financing the public debt.
In this context, the budget project for 2026 was built, the liberals claim, on realistic bases and includes a deficit target of 6.2% of GDP, a level that would keep Romania on a credible trajectory in front of the financial markets and European partners.
Liberals also cite the international economic context, marked by tensions in the Middle East, which have begun to cause disruptions in the fuel and financial markets.
Warning regarding compliance with the political agreement
The PNL reminds that the political agreement of the Coalition clearly establishes that any initiative or vote that involves an increase in budget expenditures must be approved in advance by the leadership of the Coalition and warns that failure to comply with this principle would mean the exit of the PSD from the political agreement.
A substantial modification of the budget through conjunctural parliamentary alliances could have immediate economic effects, such as an increase in the public debt, an increase in the interest at which the state borrows and the deterioration of Romania's credibility in front of international financial institutions, the liberals also claim.
The statements come in the context in which on Sunday the PSD leadership convened, from 4:00 p.m., the National Political Council (CPN), to establish the strategy in Parliament, for the vote for the state budget for 2026, but also of the increasingly frequent threats of some social-democratic leaders to leave the government.
