Changes in Retirement Funds

Making Money?

A serious change in the Polish retirement system is here to stay. Most of our pension contributions will stay in the Social Insurance Institution (ZUS) because the Ministry of Finance wants part of the contributions, which have so far been transferred to the Open Retirement Funds (OFE), to remain in special accounts in the ZUS. As much as PLN 13 billion annually is at stake here. The Ministry of Finance admits that the main aim of this move is to reduce the public deficit. How it will work? Currently, our pension contributions go to the Social Insurance Fund and from there part of the money is transferred to the Open Retirement Funds. Nevertheless, the Polish government wants to change it so that only 40% of the hitherto contributions are passed to the OFE and the remaining 60% of the PLN 22.5 billion of the annual contributions that has so far been remitted to the OFE would stay in the Social Insurance Institution in special accounts. This is the part that the Open Retirement Funds are currently obliged to invest in safe treasury bonds.

Why does the government wish to introduce this change? If this PLN 13 billion remains in the ZUS, the State Treasury will not have to issue bonds for this amount. This sum is equal to 1% of the GDP, whilst Poland has to reduce the public deficit to a level below 3% of the GDP by the end of 2012. Should pensioners worry about this change? Mr Rostowski, the Minister of Finance, reassures everyone that they do not have to be concerned. What is more, he claims that leaving the money in the ZUS will bring more profit because at present the OFE charge commission on this part of  the contribution. “The Open Retirement Funds collect premiums for this money as if it was not a 100% safe investment, but rather a risky market decision. It would be better if this money stay in the pockets of future pensioners,” says Mr Rostowski. According to the Ministry of Finance, profits can amount to as much as PLN 500 million annually and, what is more, the interest rate of the special account in the ZUS will be equal to one of the bonds. Representatives of the Open Retirement Funds have a different opinion and they are worried that if the government takes the money away from them, this may result in a change in the investment strategy into a more aggressive one, which in turn may lead to diminution in future pensions.
Dziennik

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PKP Declares Bankruptcy

End of the Line?

Polish State Railways (PKP) are facing a tragic situation. PKP Regional Railway Services, which for many Polish people is their only connection with civilisation, will soon cease to exist. The Supervisory Board wants the Management Board to declare bankruptcy within a week. As a consequence, only small railway companies and Intercity will be left. The Supervisory Board wants the Management Board to declare the bankruptcy no later than on 6^th November 2009. According to the monthly Rynek Kolejowy (Railway Market), the aim of the bankruptcy is to facilitate reaching an agreement with the obligees and the future re-establishment of the company from scratch. However, there is only one problem, i.e. pursuant to provisions of the Bankruptcy and Recovery Act as of the 8th September 2000, every company that was established on the basis of this Law cannot declare bankruptcy. Due to the fact that PKP Regional Railway Services was set up pursuant to this Act, attorneys of the company have a tough row to hoe because they have to declare insolvency of a company which cannot legally go bankrupt. If PKP Regional Railway Services collapses, this will be a tragedy for numerous passengers because many trains will cease to shuttle to and from small towns cutting them off entirely from the outside world.
Dziennik

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Dilmah to Open T-Bars

Poland - New Market?

The company Gourmet Foods, which imports and distributes Dilmah tea, will open a “t-bar” in Warsaw, the first outlet of a new tea shop chain. It is highly probable that the first t-bar will be opened in Warsaw this year. Gourmet Foods plans to develop the tea house chain under the name “t-bar”. “For the time being, we will establish only one tea shop and if customers like the idea, we will open other outlets. In the future, we would like to create a chain of tea houses in Poland,” says Mr Paweł Dudziak, communication coordinator of Gourmet Foods. If we manage to succeed, t-bars will be the first chain of tea shops in Poland, similar to those which already exist on the coffee market. As Ms Agata Zarębska, analyst of the food service market, notes, currently there are only independent tea houses or chains such as, Czas na herbatę (Tea Time) in Poland, which specialise mostly in selling tea to go. “In our shops, customers will be able not only to drink tea, but also eat and read, whilst the sale of take-away tea will just be an additional element of the business,” explains Paweł Dudziak. He also adds that the idea will most certainly turn out to be a success. “After analysing the hitherto sale of Dilmah tea, we are sure that t-bars will prove to be a success, especially since similar tea houses have already been operating in all the bigger cities in Europe, for instance, in Milan or France,” says Paweł Dudziak.
Gazeta Prawna

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Poland to Take New Shield

A Different Kind of Polish Patriot

After meeting American Vice-President Joe Biden, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk confirms that Poland will accept SM-3 launchers. Warsaw welcomed Joseph Biden in the cold and rain but the American guest had many warm words to say to the Poles. “Poland is one of our closest allies. We share the same values and ideals,” Biden said after the meeting with the Polish PM. Later on during the joint conference with the Polish President, Lech Kaczyński, the American VP said, “We have Poland in our hearts”. Biden came to Poland to neutralize the bad impression left by the unfortunate way Obama’s administration presented the new shield concept. He also came to confirm the US revised offer which Tusk later  declared that Poland will accept. “Poland is willing to participate in the SM-3 project,” he said. After the meeting with Biden, Tusk explained that “the new plan for the world needs Poland to be more than a country that just needs help”. He added, “For Americans we have become a partner expected to take action and joint responsibility for all the good that is supposed to happen in the world”.

His guest was clearly pleased with such a declaration. “The US appreciates Poland’s willingness to take this step and to have the system’s elements installed,” Biden said and went on to add that “the shield will not only work for America’s benefit but also to increase NATO and Polish security”. He assured the Polish authorities that the US treats its obligations to its allies seriously. Various Polish diplomats told Rzeczpospolita that Warsaw did not expect any specifics from this visit; rather a formal confirmation of the American will to locate the modified SM-3 missiles in Poland. Wess Mitchell, the head of the Center for European Policy Analysis in Washington, says that the significance of Biden’s visit is quite substantial. “It is a step in the right direction. The Central-European allies needed to be thoroughly run through the workings of the new anti-missile defence system. They also needed a specific offer inviting them to become a part of this system. The offer that was put on the table is very fair but for the time being it is too removed in the future for its details to be of any greater significance. What is important, however, is that America has shown its allies that it remains a credible partner which fulfils its obligations,” Mitchell told Rzeczpospolita. “We have good reason to feel satisfied,” according to Polish Foreign Affairs Minister, Radosław Sikorski, summing up Biden’s visit for Polsat News. He went on to say that he will be flying to Washington in November where, in all likelihood, he will meet up with the US Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton.
Rzeczpospolita

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Driving Licences to Cost the Earth

Happy Days to End?

If you want to have a driving licence, you should hurry up because next year the price of driving courses will skyrocket. The Ministry of Finance has decided that driving schools will be obliged to pay 22% VAT; therefore, the courses may cost as much as PLN 300 more than now. The Ministry of Finance has begun adapting Polish law to EU law, and, as always, it will end with a price increase. “The draft amendment provides that education services will still be exempt from Value Added Tax. However, according to the new nomenclature of the European Union, the activity of driving schools is not included in the catalogue of education services,” says Magdalena Kobos, the press spokesperson for the Minister of Finance. Owners of driving schools do not conceal the fact that the plans of the government will result in an increase in the prices of  courses. As a consequence, future drivers will have to pay from PLN 200 to 300 more. The draft has already been approved by the government and will now be analysed by the Polish Parliament. If everything goes according to plan, the new regulations will enter into force on the 1^st of January 2010.
Dziennik

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Holidays in Instalments

Sun, Sea and... Secure Loans

In order to receive a loan of PLN 7,500 for holidays abroad, it is enough to show one’s ID. Due to the 20% decrease in demand for foreign trips, travel agencies have been compelled to seek new methods of stimulating sales. The online travel agency Travelplanet.pl has decided to offer credit-sale. The loans are granted in cooperation with Getin Bank. “The nominal interest rate amounts to 9.9.% annually. Moreover, the customer also has to bear the costs of commission which amount to 3% of the granted loan,” says Wojciech Sury, representative of Getin Bank. Another expense is insurance which customers are obliged to buy in the event they do not present surety from three persons. Furthermore, the repayment can be divided into 3-12 instalments. Travelplanet only verifies what type of loan tourists need by taking into account their income, whilst the other operations are carried out by the bank. “If customers meet all the requirements, they can receive a loan during one visit to the travel agency. What is more, applicants do not have to show any income certificates in order to receive a loan up to PLN 7,500,” says Wojciech Sury. “The product was launched on the market two weeks ago and already several people have bought trips using these instalments,” says Bożena Garbińska, member of the Travelplanet.pl board. Other travel agencies such as eSKY.pl and Fly.pl are planning to introduce credit-sales also.
Gazeta Prawna

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Hopes for 2nd Warsaw Subway Line

Second Line

Today, the District Court in Warsaw dismissed, due to formal reasons, the charge brought by the Chinese Overseas Engineering Group Covec with regard to the tender for the construction of the second subway line in Warsaw. This means that now there is nothing else that might prevent the city from signing a contract with the winner of the tender.

New Metro Line

The tender for the construction of the central passage of the second subway line in Warsaw was won by a consortium which includes the Italian company Astaldi, Turkish Gulermak and Przedsiębiorstwo Budowy Dróg i Mostów (the Polish Roads and Bridges Building Enterprise) on the 29^th of April 2009. The consortium submitted the most inexpensive offer amounting to gross PLN 4.1 billion. Today, during a press conference, the Deputy Mayor of Warsaw Jacek Wojciechowicz, said that the contract will be signed with the contractor within the next few days and the construction work will commence in less than a year. Therefore, the subway should be ready for use within 48 months from the day of concluding the contract, i.e. in October 2013. “Due to the appeals and protests of two companies, the inhabitants of Warsaw as well as the city have lost half a year due to appeal procedures. We already said at the beginning that the tender was conducted properly, and the selection of the winning tender was carried out pursuant to the legal provisions,” said Mr Wojciechowski. Jarosław Kochaniak highlighted that the construction of the second line of the subway received around PLN 3 billion of subsidies from the European Union, which has been the highest subsidy for a single project in its history.

New Metro Line

Two consortia, Cose, which offered PLN 4.5 billion and Mostostal Warszawa which offered almost PLN 5 billion, appealed against the decision of the Warsaw Subway; however, the Commission dismissed the appeals on the 18^th of May 2009. As a consequence, both companies put the case to the National Appeal Chamber which rejected the appeal on the 10^th of July stating that the objections concerning the tender submitted by the two companies were groundless. The appellants accused the winning tender of, among other things, submitting a faulty tender bond and a very low price, whilst the city failed to provide an explanation in this matter. After the National Appeal Chamber rejected their appeal, the companies brought the case before the court which dismissed the complaint of Mostostal Warszawa on the 21^st of September. The central part of the second line of the subway will be 6.1 kilometres long and will go from the Daszyński Roundabout to Wileński Railway Station. The subway will have the following 7 stations: Daszyński Roundabout, ONZ Roundabout, Świętokrzyska, Nowy Świat, Powiśle, Stadium and Wileński Railway Station. The construction is planned to be completed in 2013 or 2014.
Gazeta Prawna

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Pro Polonia Strikes Again

Pro Polonia

Euro Pride, a march of sexual minorities coincides with the 600th anniversary of the Battle of Grunwald. In order to commemorate the fallen knights the march should be moved to one of the forests surrounding Warsaw according to Marian Brudzyński, Mazovian regional councillor and leader of the Committee for Defending Faith and National Heritage Pro Polonia. The committee sent a letter concerning this issue to City Hall yesterday. Although the gay parade will take place next year, time is required “in order to build a solid front to move the obscene march to a secluded place where they will be welcomed with open arms,” claims Brudzyński. The organisers of Euro Pride announced during the weekend that the march will take place on July 17, 2010 and it took them several years to prepare the parade. What is more, Warsaw Euro Pride will be the first such manifestation in Central Europe. However, Pro Polonia activists do not seem to share these feeling of triumph. Unrest of members of the committee, which is open to “Catholics and patriots” is caused by the coinciding dates.

A similar situation occurred this summer when Brudzyński tried to block Madonna’s concert because it was on the same day as the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary church festival and the anniversary of the Battle of Warsaw, also known as the Vistula Miracle. “Next year we will be celebrating the 600th anniversary of the Battle of Grunwald and the country’s highest authorities will be commemorating it two days before this obscene march,” says Brudzyński. “According to our information the anniversary of the Battle of Grunwald will take place near Grunwald,” explains Jarosław Jóźwiak, vice-director of the mayor’s office in Warsaw. The fact that the celebration will not take place in Warsaw does not seem to discourage Pro Polonia. “It was such a great victory that Poles are not indifferent to this anniversary,” explains Brudzyński. Under the circumstances only moving the march to  a “secluded area” can neutralise the disaster that sees these two dates coincide. “600 years ago different kinds of people were attracted to Poland – the European knights. To pay tribute to those who have fallen we cannot allow gays and lesbians to invade Warsaw 600 years later,” protests the leader of Pro Polonia.
Gazeta Wyborcza

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Polish PayByNet

Paying via Computer

Banks in Poland are launching a new payment system which will function both in internet stores and public institutions. For the time being, the PayByNet system allows users to purchase goods in electronic stores in an easy and fast way, however, before long, we will be able to apply this system also in order to pay taxes, fines and other financial liabilities in public institutions. The system, operated by the National Clearing House, delivers to a bank a defined transfer; therefore, it is not necessary to fill out any forms. All you have to do is click after which a message is immediately sent to the internet store. The PayByNet system is currently being implemented in the biggest Polish internet book store Merlin.pl, and it has already been in operation in Lataj.pl, which sells airline tickets. Other e-shops are also planning to introduce the system.

“PayByNet eliminates one of the main problems for e-commerce, namely the reservation of goods in anticipation of payment processing,” says Artur Wojtczuk, Internet Payments Manager in the National Clearing House. So far, the system has been used mostly in e-commerce; however, it has recently become the first payment service implemented on the Electronic Platform of ePUAP Public Administration Services that will allow us to pay outstanding fines and liabilities. The Regional Office of Silesia and City Hall of Piotrków Trybunalski have been the first public institutions to implement PayByNet. “We anticipate that more customers will make use of this service,” says Marietta Balda, who is responsible for e-payments in Nordea Bank, the first bank to launch this system. Apart from Nordea Bank, the system has been introduced also by Citi Handlowy, whilst other banks such as Millennium, BPS, Kredyt Bank, Inteligo and BZ WBK are planning to implement it very soon. “We are currently at the stage of establishing the terms and conditions and we plan to launch this services at the beginning of 2010,” confirms Wojciech Kaczorowski from Bank Millennium.
Rzeczpospolita

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Poles Not Welcome in UK

No Poles, Please

Between 2000 and 2006 about two million Poles emigrated for economic reasons and the majority of them settled in Ireland and the UK. However, with the economic crisis not loosening its grip, people who are now considering moving abroad in search of job opportunities may want to reconsider. “They better think twice,” says Barbara Tuge-Erecińska, the Polish Ambassador in the UK. She believes it is immensely difficult to find a job in the current economic situation. Quoted by The Guardian, Tuge-Erecińska claims that people with no knowledge of English have almost no chance of finding a job in England. What is more, the difficulties on the English job market have also struck immigrants who have lived on English soil for some time. “In such difficult times, when there are no vacancies, English public feeling may turn against Poles,” said the Polish Ambassador in The Guardian. A new wave of immigrants may only add fuel to the flame of hatred that burns in England towards foreigners. Tuge-Erecińska also warned against accepting job offers through the Internet because, according to her, it is the easiest way to fall into the net of false job intermediaries. In order to be heard throughout Poland, the Ambassador has asked priests to pass her words onto people living in the country.
wyborcza.biz

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