‘We have alternative economic plan’ claims opposition leader

Jaroslaw Kaczynski presents 'alternative economic plan': photo - PAP/Bartłomiej Zborowski

"Data indicates that our economy is in decline," Law and Justice (PiS) leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski said on Tuesday following data showing that GDP growth grew by over two percent less in 2012 than in the previous year.

GDP growth amounted to 2.0 percent in 2012, down from 4.3 percent the year before, Poland’s Central Statistical Office (GUS) announced on Monday.

Instead of formulating policies that will tackle the economic slowdown, the government issues a stream of “success propaganda” the conservative opposition leader said.

Following figures showing that the jobless rate grew to 13.4 percent in Poland in January, Kaczynski – who generally favours more state intervention into the economy than does the centre-right coalition government led by Prime Minister Donald Tusk - claimed his party has “a recipe for the finance crisis, such as a programme for fighting growing unemployment,”

On whether Poland should ratify the EU fiscal pact, Jaroslaw Kaczynski claimed that since the measure involved nations giving up more sovereignty to Brussels, the vote in the lower house of parliament (Sejm) should only be carried with a two-thirds majority, and not a simple majority as the government wants.

"This will be limitation of Polish sovereignty in return for nothing,” Kaczynski said.

According to Prime Minister Donald Tusk, the vote on the fiscal pact, which will take place in February, allows countries such as Poland, which are not yet in the eurozone, to be “full members of the EU”, he said this week. (pg)

Source: PAP

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