Belarus's budget for 2011 provides for an increase in salaries, healthcare, and education expenditures

August 24, Minsk /BELTA/. Belarusian deputies will consider the draft budget of Belarus for 2011 during the extraordinary 5th session. On August 24, the Chairman of the House of Representatives of the National Assembly of Belarus, Vladimir Andreichenko, informed the country's President Alexander Lukashenko about the progress of preparations for the session, BELTA was informed by the press service of the head of state. According to Vladimir Andreichenko, deputies will have to consider a number of important draft laws that will determine the country's life and the growth of people's well-being in 2011. In particular, it is about the draft budget of the country for 2011. In general, it will have a social orientation. Significant funds are allocated for increasing wages, pensions, scholarships, and benefits next year, expenditures on healthcare will be increased by more than 30%, and large funds are planned to be directed towards the development of the material and technical base of educational institutions. In addition, deputies will have to consider a block of issues related to changes in tax legislation. Thus, it is planned to introduce amendments to the Tax Code, which is related to the simplification of the tax system in the country and the reduction of the tax burden on enterprises. In particular, it is envisaged that next year the service tax, the infrastructure development fee will be abolished, coefficients to land tax rates and property tax rates will be revised, and the procedure for paying value added tax, as well as profit tax, will be simplified. As Vladimir Andreichenko noted, all this is aimed at increasing the investment attractiveness of Belarus and creating prerequisites for a more active development of entrepreneurship in the country. During the meeting, they also discussed preparations for the regular 6th session of the House of Representatives, which will open on October 4. 49 draft laws have been submitted for deputies' consideration. The most important of them are the Education Code, the Housing Code, the law on citizens' and legal entities' appeals, and a number of others. In November, parliamentary hearings will be held in the House of Representatives on the draft law on state innovation policy, the preparation of which was instructed by the head of state in the Address to the Belarusian people and parliament. Other issues were also considered at the meeting, in particular concerning the international activities of the House of Representatives and the work of deputies in their electoral districts. -0-