United Russia lawmakers support draft budget-2010.

MOSCOW, October 22 (Itar-Tass) - United Russia, which has a
Constitutional majority in the Russian parliament, supported the first
reading of budget-2010 on Wednesday, having taken responsibility for the
country's development.
The three Opposition parties - the Communists (KPRF), the Liberal
Democrats (LDPR), and Just Russia criticized the main financial document
and voted against it.
Speaking for Untied Russia, chairman of the house committee on
construction and land relations Martin Shakkum reminded that "we increase
pensions for the citizens whose employment record began in Soviet times,
for the first time in new history. The more the employment record is, the
larger pension they have. Not a single pensioner's income will be below
the subsistence level."
"Not only have we not decreased the funding of national defense and
national security, but we've actually increased this expenditure," the
lawmaker went on to say.
"There have been no cuts in the funding of the priority federal
program. The key programs of economic modernization, technological
breakthrough and establishment of innovative productions will receive
larger funding in 2010," Shakkum confirmed, reminding that "expenditure on
aerospace, aviation and shipbuilding will increase."
Shakkum believes that the draft budget will include many amendments by
the 2nd reading.
"Students' grants, salaries of workers on the state payroll and
servicemen's allowances should increase as early as next year, not in 2011
as was earlier planned.
"By the 2nd reading, we'll increase expenditure on repairs and
maintenance of highways and request additional funding to support road
construction in regions," the parliamentarian promised.
Speaking about subsidies for regions to balance their budgets, he
stated "we secured government guarantees that the revenue the regions will
fall short of in 2010 will be compensated in full."
"At best, it would be economic incompetence not to support this budget
now, that we've begun to receive the first positive results, and at worse,
it would be political irresponsibility. By voting for this budget, we
assume responsibility for the development of the country in the interests
of all Russian citizens," Shakkum said.
For his part, leader of the largest Opposition faction - the
Communists - Gennady Zyuganov criticized the proposed budget.
In particular, he rebuked the authors of the document for allocating a
mere 27 billion roubles for the development of rural areas.
He believes that everything related to the support of the person, from
childhood to education, has been truncated to the maximum.
"They've even thrown out the census," he complained.
"It's only the high oil price that saves us now: each granny now knows
for how much a barrel sells," Zyuganov said.
Meanwhile, the KPRF has ideas of its own how to replenish the budget.
"There is a huge mineral base, there's also the opportunity to
introduce state monopoly on alcohol and tobacco, and consider progressive
tax.
"We believe (Finance Minister) Kudrin has prepared not the budget, but
a statement on the government's collective resignation. We won't vote for
this sham budget," Zyuganov stated.
For her part, first deputy head of Just Russia Oksana Dmitriyeva said
the budget is a "follow-up of the policy of dependence on raw materials
and a low standard of living of a majority of the population."
"The government only counts on an increase in world prices of oil,"
she said.
According to her, the budget is not welfare-oriented, nor does it
limit the ambitions of natural monopolies, nor the increase in tariffs.
Lastly, Liberal Democratic Party leader Vladimir Zhirinovsky said the
government budget has "no logic of economic development."
It is conductive to recession, not economic upturn, he said adding
that his faction would not support the proposed document.
-0-myz