Prague, Dec 13 (CTK) – New Czech Labour and Social Affairs Minister Jaroslava Nemcova wants to focus on changes in pensions, the preparation of a pension reform, alternative family care and interconnection of social and health care, she said after PM Andrej Babis (both ANO) inaugurated her on Wednesday.
He said the labour and social affairs sector was of key importance for his cabinet and that its new minister should focus not only on pensions, but also on the functioning of labour offices and coordination of activities with the Health Ministry.
Babis said his government would like to establish a pension account that would be separated from the state budget and where all pension insurance payments would be sent.
This is not the case now when these payments go to the state coffers from which, however, extra sums go to pensions since the revenues from pension insurance have for years been lower than pension expenditures.
Babis also mentioned that pensions of alls seniors over 85 might increase by 1000 crowns.
Babis said Nemcova should also concentrate on changing the role of labour offices and a revision of welfare payments.
The Czech Republic has the lowest unemployment rate in the EU. There are some 270,000 jobless people in the country with a population of 10.6 million.
Labour offices should find out whether these unemployed earn money on the side or do not work at all, he said.
The authorities should also prevent abuse of housing benefits, he added.
Social housing does not officially exist in the Czech Republic. The previous government did not push through the respective law.
Nemcova said she did to plan any drastic personnel changes in office. However, she did not rule out lowering the number of the ministry employees.
Nemcova replaced Michaela Marksova (Social Democrats, CSSD), who headed the office in the previous coalition government of the CSSD, ANO and Christian Democrats (KDU-CSL) and who also welcomed her in the entrance hall of the ministry’s seat on Wednesday.
Babis thanked Marksova for her work in the sector.
