Blaga Says Boc To Run For Cluj Mayor Again
Liberal Party co-president Vasile Blaga said after a party meeting this weekend Emil Boc will be the party’s candidate for a new term as Cluj mayor.
Leaders of the former Democratic Liberal Party said Boc has notoriety in the city and would be the best candidate for the Liberal Party.
On the other hand, leaders of the pre-merger Liberal Party said Boc should take a step back because he supported another party’s candidate in last year’s presidential election. (Adevarul)
Oil Companies Accuse Romania Of Discrimination Over Special Construction Tax
Oil companies seeking or extracting hydrocarbon in Romania accuse the state of discrimination as politicians decided to eliminate a tax on special constructions just for agriculture and will keep it for other industries until 2017.
The Romanian association of oil exploration and production companies welcomed political consensus on the tax code but consider the partial elimination of the special construction tax discriminatory.
The tax rate is 1% of a company’s asset value and brings in RON1 billion a year to the state budget. The biggest payers of this tax are oil company Petrom and gas producer Romgaz. (Adevarul)
INS: Romania Housing Permits Up 3.3% In January-July
Romanian housing permits went up 3.3% in the first seven months of the year, to 22,271, the statistics institute INS said.
In July alone, the number of housing permits issued was 3.5% lower than in June but 4.3% higher than in July 2014, the data showed.
Residential constructions in rural areas accounted for 63.3% of new building permits issued in July 2015. (Puterea)
Sheraton Enters Romanian Market Following Partnership With Grand Plaza Hotel
Hotel chain Starwood Hotels & Resorts has officially entered the Romanian market with Sheraton brand, after having signed a franchise contract for minimum 20 years with Grand Plaza Hotel, which owns the former Howard Johnson hotel in Bucharest.
Grand Plaza Hotel SA invested nearly EUR6 million to convert the hotel from four to five stars to meet Sheraton requirements. The hotel currently has 270 rooms, from 280 previously.
Sheraton Hotels & Resorts includes 430 hotels in almost 75 countries worldwide. Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc. is one of the main high-end hotel companies in the world, with nearly 1,200 properties in 100 countries and 181,400 employees. (Romania Libera)
Romania Was Cheapest Sea Coast Destination In The Region In 2015
Romania became the cheapest sea coast destination in the area this tear, according to a study by the local organization of employers in the tourism industry.
According to the study, Neptun is the cheapest resort on the Romanian Black Sea coast.
“The VAT rate cut on food items in June made Romania the cheapest destination. Prices stayed low, while in other destination they grew by an average 20% compared to last year due to inflation and currency exchange rates,” said the organization’s executive vice-president, Dragos Raducan. (Adevarul)
Health Ministry Official Charged With Corruption
Anticorruption prosecutors have charged a director within the Health Ministry with six counts of bribe taking bribe taking.
Mihaela Ela Udrea, director of the Drug Policy and Medical Devices Department within the Ministry of Health, allegedly received money and cosmetics as bribes to approve licenses for new pharmaceutical outlets.
Prosecutors organized a sting operation on August 27 and found the ministry official in possession of RON 2,000. Udrea has been placed under preventive arrest for 30 days. (Curierul National)