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With strong criticism of the Government's strategy, the opposition began to debate the new retirement formula in Deputies - Infobae
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Con fuertes críticas a la estrategia del Gobierno, la oposición comenzó a debatir la nueva fórmula jubilatoria en Diputados
Los bloques dialoguistas apuntaron contra José Luis Espert por negarse a realizar una reunión conjunta con la comisión de Presupuesto. Los libertarios quieren que la actualización previsional se discuta dentro de la nueva versión de la Ley Ómnibus
www.infobae.com
March 21, 2024
The dialogue blocks targeted José Luis Espert for refusing to hold a joint meeting with the Budget commission. Libertarians want the pension update to be discussed within the new version of the Omnibus Law
By Federico Millenaar
Social Security Commission
The Social Security Commission of the Chamber of Deputies met this Thursday to begin analyzing the 16 projects to modify the retirement mobility formula . During the meeting there was strong criticism of José Luis Espert for refusing to hold a plenary meeting with the Budget commission, of which he is the head.
The president of the commission, Gabriela Brouwer de Koning, proposed a limited schedule that includes an information meeting on April 4, in which they hope to hear from officials and specialists, and two days of debate - at most - to have a more informed opinion. due April 20 . But without the participation of the Budget, the projects cannot reach the venue.
The ruling party seeks to debate the retirement formula within the framework of the Omnibus Law , something that will only happen after Easter. For all opposition blocs, this alternative is unacceptable given that the current formula liquefies the purchasing power of pensions month by month.
“We cannot ignore that today retirees are the most affected by the high inflation process that we have in Argentina, which has accelerated with the devaluation of last December. In March 2023, the minimum income that retirees had was 20% higher than the total basic basket and today, with or without a bonus, it is between 10% and 15% below the poverty line,” he explained. Maximiliano Ferraro of the Civic Coalition.
In response to Infobae 's consultation , both the UCR and Hacemos Coalión Federal acknowledged that they do not have regulatory tools to force the Budget commission to meet to advance on their side or to force a plenary session. “The opinion of this commission will be heard, this is how majorities are built,” said Carla Carrizo , from the UCR.
Gabriela Brouwer de Koning, president of the Social Security commission
“ Why does Espert refuse to hold a plenary session? It seems that for Espert and the ruling party it is more important to condition an agreement on the Bases Law. It also seems that Espert is part of the caste and does not want to work or is very busy on television channels calling for a tax rebellion,” attacked deputy Sergio Palazzo , from Unión por la Patria, at the beginning of the meeting.
The projects of the majority blocks agree that pensions must be updated based on the INDEC Price Index . However, there are some differences regarding the mechanism that should be used to compensate for “ splicing ” with the new formula.
In that sense, the Civic Coalition project proposes an extra payment of 20.6% to recover part of the purchasing power lost due to inflation in December and January.
At the request of the Minister of Economy Luis “Toto” Caputo , the ruling party had contemplated during the debate on the Omnibus Law a compensation of 10% corresponding to January, but since that month inflation exceeded 20%, almost the entire opposition group considered that it was insufficient. The difference represents about USD 2 billion.
“We must take into account two emergencies, that of retirees and that of the fiscal deficit , which in 2023 ended at 15 points and is the origin of inflation. Argentina cannot take on more debt or increase taxes, nor can it continue issuing. There are no other ways than to organize the accounts,” said María Eugenia Vidal (PRO) in a nod to the ruling party. Vidal's project proposes an update by CPI and an annual additional of 30% of the variation between the RIPTE and the CPI. “It would be to avoid opening up the potential for lawsuits because there are rulings that say that the salary variation has to be included,” explained the former governor.
During the debate, several deputies also raised the need to end all privileged retirements : not only those of the President and the Vice President, but also those of the Judiciary and the Diplomatic Service.
For her part, deputy Gisela Marziotta defended the current formula - which was implemented during the Alberto Fernández government - that combines RIPTE and collection. However, she recognized that it has negative effects in the context of high inflation, so she proposed a “ trigger clause ” to compensate for inflation.
The lack of interest of the ruling party in debating a new mobility formula in the short term was evidenced by the scarce presence of libertarian deputies . At the beginning of the meeting there were only three members of La Libertad Avanza and towards the end of the meeting only Carlos García from Chaco remained in his place.
