The Chairman of the Ukrainian Parliament, Ruslan Stefanchuk, announced the registration of a package of four draft laws in the Verkhovna Rada aimed at making the subsistence minimum a real and functional social standard, rather than a purely formal figure.
According to Ruslan Stefanchuk, the subsistence minimum is currently used for everything — from calculating social benefits to determining fines and official salaries — which causes it to lose its primary purpose: to support those who truly need assistance.
«Ukraine must transform the subsistence minimum into a truly effective instrument of social justice,» he emphasized.
The proposed changes envisage defining the subsistence minimum as a social standard that genuinely guarantees basic living conditions. They also call for separating it from functions that are not inherent to its purpose, such as determining public officials’ salaries or calculating fines.
«We propose introducing separate indicators for calculating salaries, fines, and fees, so that these do not affect the level of the subsistence minimum,» noted Ruslan Stefanchuk
The Head of the Ukrainian Parliament expressed confidence that the adoption of this legislative package will allow for the gradual increase of the subsistence minimum in line with budgetary capacity, make social benefits fairer, and restore the original purpose of the subsistence minimum — «to serve as a genuine social standard.»