Victor Ponta: Valeriu Zgonea, No Longer Chamber Of Deputies Speaker
Romania’s former Prime Minister Victor Ponta told Romania TV station that Valeriu Zgonea will no longer be the Speaker of the Chamber Of Deputies as of Monday.
The Social Democratic Party (PSD) amended the Regulation of the Chamber of Deputies to make easier the replacement of Chamber Speaker Valeriu Zgonea. Thus, the Chamber Speaker automatically loses his position when the political party which proposed him for the respective position withdraws its political support.
The new Chamber Speaker will be elected with a majority of votes cast by deputies and each parliamentary group has the right to propose a candidate. (Evenimentul Zilei)
PSD Mulls Amending Ombudsman’s Law
Two social democrat leaders, deputies Florin Iordache and Marian Neacsu, submitted a legislative initiative for amending the law on the functioning of the Romanian ombudsman.
“Law no. 35/1997 on the organization and functioning of the Ombudsman institution, republished, with subsequent amendments, does not regulate the situation of the interim position for the period between the end of the ombudsman mandate and the appointing of a new ombudsman by the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate, in common session,“ the two MPs said.
According to the draft law, the interim leadership of the ombudsman institution will be ensured by a deputy of the ombudsman appointed by the Permanent Bureaus of the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate. (Adevarul)
Natural Gas Pipeline Linking Romania And Bulgaria To Be Completed This Year
The natural gas pipeline under the Danube River linking Romania and Bulgaria will be completed by the end of the year, increasing the energy security between the two countries, Energy Minister Vlad Grigorescu said at the opening of the Regional Energy Forum FOREN 2016.
“At the end of this year, we will finalize the gas interconnector between Romania and Bulgaria. After years of stumbling, the project will eventually be completed. Romania and Bulgaria will both benefit from an increased energy security,” Grigorescu said.
As for the gas pipeline connecting Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary and Austria (BRUA), the minister said that it was the first time in a long period when Romania pledged to carry out 500 kilometers of new pipeline, with EU financing. (Evenimentul Zilei)
Travel Agencies To Set Up Private Guarantee Fund
Travel agencies want to set up a private guarantee fund for compensating tourists if the travel agency which sells their vacation pack goes bankrupt.
According to Alin Burcea, president of National Association of Tour Operators (ANAT), the decision to set up a private guarantee fund was due to the fact that insurance companies are not interested in covering the insolvency risk for travel agencies, after several tour operators went insolvent or bankrupt starting with 2009.
“The Guarantee Fund is the greatest challenge for tour operators at present. We have been looking for a solution for three years, we had talks with nearly all insurance companies, but they don’t want to insure travel agencies,“ ANAT president told News.ro. (Adevarul)
“Wisdom of the Earth” Sculpture To Be Exhibited At BNR Museum
“Wisdom of the Earth” (Cumintenia Pamantului) sculpture, the famous work of Constantin Brancusi, will be exhibited at the Museum of the National Bank of Romania, to be more accessible to the public.
Thus, it was transferred on Friday from Cotroceni Museum to BNR Museum.
Insurance company OMNIASIG will cover the cost of the insurance policy for protecting the work until the end of the campaign.
The work of the famous sculptor will be available for free visits between June 16 and July 8, Mondays to Fridays, between 10:00 – 18:00 hours, then it will be available according to the usual visiting schedule, posted on the central bank’s website. (Puterea)