15.12.08

Cabinet meeting yesterday rearranged functions performed by deputy premiers. On Premier Vladimir Putin's suggestion, two anti- crisis panels (one monitoring the state of affairs in the social sphere, the other in economy) were merged into one under Senior Deputy Premier Igor Shuvalov. Deputy Premier Alexander Zhukov was relieved of these duties.

Of the once nearly endless list of functions Zhukov had been entrusted with at first, only one remained - namely organization of the Eurovision contest in Moscow next year. Needless to say, it does not even come close in terms of importance to monitoring of the budget or preparations for the Sochi Olympics. Andrei Belousov of the government apparat meanwhile said that Putin's decision to set up a single anti-crisis center under Shuvalov was nothing personal. On the other hand, the authorities are known for the penchant to spring personnel decisions on the unsuspected.

Putin himself attributed the merger of anti-crisis panels to the necessity "to see a whole picture of everything taking place in the social sphere and economy."

The premier made another emphasis on recompense for the losses of the regions incurred by tax innovations. It seems that the matter concerns reduction of the income tax.

Deputy Finance Minister Anton Siluanov is convinced that all Federation subjects will finish the 2008 financial year more or less successfully due to what money made in the first ten months of the year. "It is the next year that will become a test for our financial system," Siluanov said. The financier admitted that the crisis was forcing the government to reduce capital investments and implementation of social commitments.

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Source: Nezavisimaya Gazeta