The Verkhovna Rada held the working meeting on the practice of applying state aid under European Union law

Information Department of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Secretariat
Published on 21 May 2021, at 11:05

On May 20, the Verkhovna Rada held the working meeting on the practice of applying state aid under European Union law with the participation of MPs - members of the Committee on Economic Development, the Committee on Transport and Infrastructure, and representatives of the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine.

Olha Pishchanska, Chair of the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine, presented a report on the results of a joint study visit of the AMCU and MPs to Romania in April 2021, during which the organization and functioning of the state aid system was discussed.

She said that Romania was chosen for the study tour because it is a country that has a significant positive experience and, at the same time, joined the EU only 15 years ago.

The head of the AMCU noted that in our country state aid is perceived as something unacceptable and prohibited. According to her, as it turned out during the trip, in Romania, it has been transformed into a format of economic development of the state - certain industries and individual regions. "This requires prior discussion, planning, understanding why this money will be spent, what we expect and how we will control these funds in the future," said Olha Pishchanska.

She stressed the need for cooperation of all interested authorities in order for the state's funds to result in the creation of new jobs, increased tax revenues, and, as a result, economic growth.

Chairperson of the Committee on Economic Development Dmytro Natalukha noted that, having got acquainted with the experience of Romania, he concluded, "Regulation of state aid in the EU, in addition to the declared fight against corruption, is carried out mainly in order to create a level playing field for Member States to finance certain sectors from the budget."

According to him, "Ukraine must go a certain way in order to be on an equal footing with our European partners." At the same time, Dmytro Natalukha believes that we should negotiate so that before joining the EU, the country can finance those areas that it considers a priority.

The importance of the Romanian experience gained during the trip was noted by the Chairman of the Committee on Transport and Infrastructure Yuriy Kisel. He also stated his readiness to continue working on the regulation of state aid within the Committee.

Summing up the meeting, the Chairperson of the Antimonopoly Committee thanked the deputies for their interest in the topic and expressed hope for continuing the discussion on the new bill to develop the most effective model of state aid regulation for the Ukrainian economy.