National Press Review, 18 August

The cost of living and inflation. The state of the social assisted. The new Minister of Health. These are the main topics of today's national newspapers.

The Adevărul: "Petrol, bread and cigarettes rule the top of expenses – because of the price increases, fuel and tobacco keep the inflation rising and the living costs consume 80% of the budgets."

Therefore the journalists propose an analysis of Romanians' monthly expenses, based on the figures provided by the National Institute of Statistics and conclude: medicines, the gas bill or clothing come first, while meat products, for example, only ranked number 10 on the list.

Laundry soap, airline tickets or hotel accommodation can be already referred to as the luxury goods Romanians dropped.

The only piece of news that might soothe some is that we are not the top country concerning inflation anymore - Romania dropped to second place, being surpassed by Estonia.

Also in the Adevărul, a macro view on the global food market, under the title:"Food crisis growing closer."

Worldwide food prices increased by 33% last year.

In Romania, the Adevărul said, the increase was by 10 percent. And while World Bank President Robert Zoellick points out the tragedy of South Africa, where, according to a recent report, over 10 million people need urgent humanitarian assistance, in Romania, the journalists write, the huge agricultural potential is perfectly useless.

Poor and hungry, but also ... assisted. Or ... poverty feels different when you are assisted.

The România Liberă once again casts a look on the state aid situation.

We are going backwards: The conclusion:"we are the country inventing its poor people."

The consequences:"The state wastes 2 billion lei on aids given fraudulently to some wealthy families, owning lands and tractors, according to the Ministry of Labour."

The causes:"Superficial investigations, electoral alms, the lack of effective control."

The solutions:"Changing the legislation and reducing the grants."

We remain at the inefficiency chapter and we learn from the Evenimentul Zilei, that the tax evasion in Romanian tourism is approximated to 40% of the total.

One weekend day when the sea resorts are full, the journalists wrote, about EUR 4 million escape fiscal memory.

Finally, today's main newspapers highlighted the fact that we have the 20th Minister of Health since the Revolution.

The new minister is Dr. Ritli Ladislau, nominated by the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Romania (UDMR).

"UDMR remained with both Health and money," was the title in the Evenimentul Zilei.

"Ritli inherits Cseke's issues," the România Liberă wrote,"UDMR and the Democratic Liberal Party (PDL) compromise on Health," the Jurnalul Naţional headlined.

Apart from the portrait of Dr. Ritli whom we will have enough time to know, the latest conclusions, presented in all the main newspapers today were: continuing with reforms in the system is absolutely necessary and ... National Health Insurance House will be coordinated by the ministry and headed by a secretary of state, following the principle set out in the România Liberă by a former minister of health," in order to introduce reforms, you need to be in charge of a field."

Translated by: Iulia Florescu
MA Student, MTTLC, Bucharest University.