Speaking in the State Duma, Mishustin broke all records

The speech of the head of government with an annual report in the State Duma was planned for mid-April, but was postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic. This delay, as well as its reason, allowed Mishustin not to be held accountable for Medvedev’s work. He only thanked the previous composition of the Cabinet of Ministers for good starting positions: at the beginning of the year, macroeconomic stability was ensured in the country, significant reserves were accumulated, and the national debt dropped to minimum values. “All this created good prerequisites for a breakthrough, but here we are faced with the coronavirus!” – Mishustin complained. The prime minister admitted that initially he was going to solve completely different problems, but, as they say, there is a silver lining: stress helped the government to rally and pull itself together. In an epidemic, he said, all deputy prime ministers and ministers worked with full dedication from morning to night, and important decisions were made and formalized literally within 24 hours.

Mishustin listed in detail which measures to support citizens and businesses brought the greatest return and how much they cost the state. “We decided to soften the budgetary policy: while revenues were reduced, expenses did not decrease, they even increased,” the prime minister recalled. In general, the government allocated 5.3 trillion rubles to combat the epidemic and its consequences, and tried to provide targeted support to everyone who needed it. Also, the strong side of the authorities’ policy during this period Mishustin considers proactive action. This avoided the collapse of the healthcare system and made it possible to get through the peaks in incidence better than other countries. However, the epidemic also revealed the problems that have arisen due to the optimization of healthcare. “The government’s task is to eliminate them,” Mishustin said to the audience’s applause. In general, the prime minister spoke emotionally, brightly, well, and it seemed that without a piece of paper … The secret was revealed by the deputies themselves, who posted on the Internet photographs of translucent prompters standing on both sides of the podium. To see the text typed on them, the head of the Cabinet turned to the right and then to the left. However, this American way of speaking to an audience looked better anyway than traditional sight-reading.

“We are facing different tasks than six months ago, but the basic values ​​and priorities have remained unchanged – to serve people, work as a team and achieve results,” the prime minister said. Although the coronavirus is not yet over and vigilance cannot be lost, the government, he said, is starting work to restore economic growth and citizens’ incomes. In this regard, great hopes are pinned on the pharmaceutical industry, the agro-industrial complex, the chemical industry, shipbuilding and housing construction, which can become growth drivers. Also, the government’s portfolio includes 19 infrastructure projects, the implementation of which will have a multiplier effect. “We need a technological breakthrough!” – said the prime minister, promising to create the most favorable environment for the IT business and provide the industry with personnel. By 2024, the enrollment for these specialties, he said, will increase by 2.5 times. The state, for its part, will become an active promoter of artificial intelligence: the “digital platforms” it creates will transfer interaction with citizens and business into a contactless format. According to the head of the Cabinet, “digital” will help to cope with the challenges of the time and will provide an opportunity for the country’s advanced development. Another promising area, Mikhail Mishustin called tourism. Tour operators have already been provided with subsidies for 3.5 billion rubles, another 15 billion will go to partially compensate the costs of people who decide to rest in Russian regions by the end of the year. Depending on the price of the tour, they will receive cashback in the amount of 5 (for a trip cost of 25 thousand rubles) to 15 thousand rubles. (at 75 thousand rubles).

When the time for questions came, Viacheslav Volodin decided to remind the prime minister that in connection with the adoption of amendments to the Constitution, the current report is being held in a new format, the ministers are present at the meeting in full, and they can also answer to the deputies – “Otherwise, they somehow depressed! ” But Mishustin did not grab this lifesaver, saying that he wanted to convey to the parliamentarians the logic of the government’s actions and plans. As you might expect, many of the questions were inspired by the coronavirus. The people’s representatives were interested in when the vaccine will finally appear, whether the children will be able to go to school on September 1 and what is still happening with the summer health campaign. The prime minister reassured that restrictions on the travel of children for holidays outside their region are being lifted, and the education system as a whole is preparing for the start of the school year as usual, but everything will depend on the situation in each region. The final decision will be made on August 20. As for the vaccine, there is nothing new, we are waiting for the fall. “But if there is a second wave, the healthcare system will cope with it. There are reserves, ”Mishustin assured the deputies. “We need to cheer up! People should go to and from work in every region and settlement with a song! ” – Nikolai Kharitonov held a meeting. “Let’s go with a song!” – the prime minister agreed.

Oleg Shein inquired about the prospects of the “garage amnesty”, and without knowing it stepped on a sore corn. It turns out that the prime minister once fell victim to a tolerable campaign: “I had a garage, but we could not keep it.” Therefore, Mishustin supports the bill on “garage amnesty” with two hands: if a person has a garage, he should be able to issue it, this is fair. “But they won’t return you anyway!” – the deputies sympathized.

A big conversation turned out around the budgetary provision of the regions. The Cabinet of Ministers was accused of unfair distribution of funds: according to Volodin, the formula used by the Ministry of Finance is not always transparent, and every third ruble goes to rich regions, and the poor receive crumbs. The Finance Ministry also got from Gennady Zyuganov. “I want to turn to Siluanov, I wanted to say to ‘Comrade Siluanov’, but he is still not up to his comrade. A hole in the budget of 5 trillion rubles. What will you sequester? There is a groan in the regions! ”- said the leader of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation, demanding to nationalize the raw material industries and dispossess the rich. Mishustin stood up for Siluanov: according to him, the Ministry of Finance does nothing opaque. And he repulsed Zyuganov’s attack on the rich, noting that, unlike him, he was happy when someone got richer. The main thing is to make sure that the taxes of wealthy people do not go offshore, but remain in Russia. On Cyprus, such work has already been done, there are other jurisdictions ahead.

The Liberal Democratic Party leader demanded that Mishustin put on a mask and stop shaking hands with everyone. “I have antibodies, immunoglobulin G. In principle, not a single case in the world, if any, has happened yet. I try very hard not to infect a single State Duma deputy, ”retorted Mishustin. The prime minister agreed to Zhirinovsky’s request to support Mikhail Degtyarev, who went to Khabarovsk on a troubled farm: “I’ll call him, we’ll work.” And only the desire to take on not only economic, but also political functions (“You must be like Stolypin, and you are being lowered below Gaidar!”) Left without comment. That, however, knowing how Stolypin ended, is not at all surprising.