Value of R$ 175 billion is maintained, but it depends on Congress, says Lula’s economist

The elected government will maintain the proposal for an increase of R$ 175 billion on the Budget forecast for 2023, to be included in the Transition PEC, in debate between congressmen and the transition team of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. The final amount to be approved, however, will depend on what Congress allows.

The information was supplied by economist Antonio Correia de Lacerda, a member of the transition team for planning, budgeting and management, who spoke in an interview with CNN this Wednesday (16).

“In principle, yes, the proposal to include the value of R$ 175 billion is maintained, as a demand”, said Lacerda, referring to the values ​​that want to make room in next year’s Budget to include the expansion of the new Bolsa Família for at least R$600, in addition to other social programs and expenses.

“As for the details, this needs to be negotiated in Parliament, as it is a proposed amendment to the Constitution. So obviously there has to be the flexibility to listen to parliamentarians to reach a consensus. It will not be a decision only within the scope of the transition team, but also depends on the receptiveness it will have in the National Congress”, said the economist, who is a professor at PUC-SP and president of the Federal Council of Economics.

Lacerda also stated that the spending ceiling will need to be reviewed, in line with the government program presented by then-candidate Lula and elected at the polls. For him, the new version of the rule that controls spending should combine the predictability expected by economic agents with greater flexibility for the government.

“It is a subject that needs deep discussion and negotiation with the Legislature”, he said. “The spending ceiling, in practice, has already been breached throughout 2021 and 2022, which shows that it is a rule that has no support (…). So we need a new fiscal framework that provides predictability, but, at the same time, provides flexibility for the State to carry out its function.”