The government is considering PSDA conditions for 2019 budget vote

On 21 December last year, the Kosovo Assembly had voted the Budget Bill in principle.

Although the ruling coalition did not receive the support of the two largest opposition parties -- the Democratic League of Kosovo and the Vetevendosje Movement -- a conditional support received from the third opposition subject, the Social Democrat Party, which was sufficient to be adopted in the first reading.

The latter has submitted five requests so that its deputies can even vote in second reading on this bill.

Government officials told Free Europe Radio that by the middle of this month the Budget Bill is expected to be presented for second reading in the Assembly and final approval.

Haki Shatri, Kosovo Prime Minister Ramush Haradinaj's economic adviser, says he hopes the bill will receive sufficient votes, as he says it is at the end of reviewing the demands of the Social Democrat Party of Kosovo. He said some of the PSD's demands could be met by second reading in the Assembly.

Some requests require more time, the budget must first be approved and they remain in process of making them real. So most have been taken into consideration and are being considered, while some are being prepared in parallel to be approved at the same session when this year's” budget is approved, Shatri said.

The Social Democrat Party has filed five demands, as a condition for the budget vote.

It requires that the law on salaries be adopted in second reading along with the second reading of the draft budget, with special emphasis on health sector requirements, the Law for Dialogue be adopted in Government and sent to the Assembly, the Government Law to be brought to the Assembly for approval in a three-month term, then the full functioning of the Ministry of Agriculture and the release of the Ministry of Agriculture's duty, Nenad Ricalo, and caution that the draft budget is heavily charged with social and pension schemes.

The “Without realisation of these requirements, presented even at the last session, will have no votes for the” budget, said Dardan Sejdiu, chief of the parliamentary group of the Social Democrat Party of Kosovo.

And the other opposition party in Kosovo, the Democratic League of Kosovo once again has confirmed that it will not vote the budget designed for 2019.

Hykmete Bajrami MP from the LDK ranks says the current draft budget is divided according to party interests and not in favour of economic development or increasing the well-being of Kosovo citizens.

The “is simply a budget which is divided into group and party bases for party interests of the ruling coalition. So it's obviously a bargain. It has already been seen that the Social Democrat Party's votes have also taken on almost blackmail. So we consider that this draft budget as such, blackmailed by 23 parties of the ruling coalition, is not in favour of citizens”, Bajrami said.

The vote against the 2019 Budget Bill has also warned the deputies of the Vetevendosje Movement, under which this budget design does not address the unemployment and poverty problems and is not the budget that promises economic development.

Kosovo's 2019 budget, according to the current design, is expected to reach 2.3 billion euros.

Of that figure, around 770m euros are earmarked for capital investments.