Government approved Draft State Budget for 2008

Cabinet of Ministers has unanimously approved a Draft State Budget for 2008. “The Budget is unanimously approved,” Prime Minister of Ukraine Yulia Tymoshenko told after the Government sitting, according to the government’s press-office.

The Head of Government noted that 2008 Draft Budget of Ukraine provides compensation of payouts to depositors of the Oshchadbank of the former USSR totalling nearly 20 billion UAH, 6 billion UAH of which intended to be directed at monetary payouts.

At that, Yulia Tymoshenko noted that deposit payouts would be financed in part at the expense of incomings from privatization: this part of funds to be aimed at monetary payouts, for calculations in the sphere of health, education and also, probably, for calculations of consumer goods.

“Possibly, we agree with some commercial networks which are selling domestic goods and give them an opportunity to sell their goods and the state will pay off through taxes then,” the Head of Government said.

At the same time, the Prime Minister noted that in February while reconsidering the 2008 State Budget an issue on financing the extinction of obligations of depreciated savings would be discussed again.

According to Yulia Tymoshenko, the Oshchadbank of Ukraine has already started making an inventory of debts on Oshchadbank savings of the former USSR. “We should clearly make an inventory of debts, define how many people are claiming to repayment of savings,” the Prime Minister said, adding that Government means to avoid queues when making an inventory and repaying deposits as well as considerable impact of payments on inflation. “Everyone will have a special number and appointed time in order to avoid queue line,” Yulia Tymoshenko noted.