The Catalan Parliament will reduce its budget by 9.5% in 2011

Barcelona (ACN).- In an attempt to set example, the Catalan Parliament  said today that it will cut its budget for this year by 9.5%. The austerity plan was approved by all the parties present in the chamber’s bureau: the ruling Centre-Right Catalan Nationalist Coalition, Convergència i Unió (CiU); the first opposition party, the Catalan Socialist Party (PSC); and the second opposition party, the Catalan People’s Party (PPC). The main measure is putting a stop to the Parliament’s building enlargement project, which was meant to build another plenary room and new offices for its members and staff. Stopping the enlargement will save the Parliament 6 million euros in the next 4 years. The President of the Catalan Parliament Núria de Gispert said she will give this money by means of a cheque to the Catalan President as a gesture to help finance the Catalan Government and reduce its deficit. De Gispert said that she hopes other departments and public institutions do the same.

The Parliament’s austerity plan foresees reducing the Chamber’s staff by 10% in the next 4 years. The staff currently makes up of 257 people, including lawyers, administration and security. Most of this cutting will be done by not replacing the retired people. Another measure is reducing the number of official cars. Currently there is a total of 16 cars for the Parliament’s bureau and for the Parliamentary groups. The car fleet will be cut by 50% in the next year and half. In addition, official duty cars will only be used exclusively for representation purposes. Only the President, who is Catalonia’s second authority, and the two Vice Presidents will have the official car available for 24 hours a day. Lastly, the institution`s regular expenditure, from protocol to office paper, will be cut by between 25 and 40%, depending on each category.