The Prime Minister announced the highway for 2014, investments of 600 million and growth of 3,5 percent

The construction of the highway to the north will begin in February, next year we will have more than 600 million foreign investments and economic growth of 3,5 percent, during 2014, crisis taxes will be abolished, labor legislation will be flexible, and the Government will continue with the abolition of business barriers.

All this was promised by Prime Minister Milo Đukanović at the meeting of the Council of Foreign Investors.

"We are nearing the end of the negotiations with the Chinese consortium, the first-ranked for the construction of the highway, and we received information from them a few days ago that they are finalizing the approval for a loan from Exim Bank and a proposal to start the implementation of the project around February 25 next year," said Đukanović.

The Chinese telecommunications and infrastructure company (CCCC international) offered to build the 42-kilometer section of the highway from Smokovac to Mateševo ​​for 809 million euros, of which the state budget will be 120 million, and the rest will be a loan from the Chinese state Exim bank.

Đukanović said that February 25 does not have to be a precise deadline, but that it will certainly be in that period. This would be the second start of highway construction, after October 15, 2009, when this junction was supposed to be built by a Croatian constructor. The Government announced at the beginning of the year that construction will begin by the end of this year.

He announced that, if the planned economic growth is achieved, during the next year the Government will be able to cancel the crisis taxes that were introduced last year and this year. He called the "euro by euro" taxes, the additional tax on salaries over 482 euros and the increased VAT value added tax as crisis taxes.

Đukanović expects that investments of more than three billion euros will be realized in the next three years, citing tourist complexes on Luštica, Kumbor, Maljevik, Kraljičina beach and Miločer, as well as an undersea energy cable for Italy, the second block of the Pljevlja Thermal Power Plant, a highway and the possible start of oil exploration and gas in the Montenegrin seabed.

He stated that the suggestions they receive from the Council of Foreign Investors are valuable and that they have already solved some problems, which shows progress in the list of countries in terms of ease of doing business.

"Improving the investment climate should be the task of all governments for a long period of time so that foreign and domestic investors invest money with the possibility of fertilizing it," said Đukanović.

TV News, Daniela Vranković

According to his expectations, thanks to the investments in Montenegro, as well as the impact of the economic recovery that began in the EU zone, the USA and Japan can expect stable economic growth in the coming years.

He announced the conclusion of new free trade agreements with many countries, modeled after the one with the World Trade Organization, in order to increase exports and reduce the very large foreign trade deficit, which, he said, will be a chance for existing and new investors because they will to open other markets for product placement.

The Prime Minister expects the Montenegrin economy to end this year with a growth of 2,5 percent, which according to him is small, but better than last year's minus of two percent.

The World Bank announced two days ago that Montenegro will have an economic growth of 1,8 percent this year, and 2,5 percent next year if the forecasts of large foreign investments come true.

Labor law and a cook's coffee

President of the Council of Foreign Investors and director of Telekom, Rudiger Šulc, said that a big problem for employers is that they do not know whether the General Collective Agreement (OKU) is valid, because there is conflicting information about it.

On December 22, a part of the Labor Law enters into force, which stipulates that employers with all employees, with whom they concluded a fixed-term employment contract for more than two years, must conclude an indefinite contract or terminate the employment relationship

Đukanović admitted that it is a big problem and that the Government will get more involved in solving it, even though it is a matter of social dialogue between employers and unions.

The director of the Crnogorsk commercial bank, Sabolč Horvat, asked the prime minister how the issue from the Labor Law on fixed-term or indefinite employment would be resolved and gave an example from his company.

"We had a cook who was employed with a fixed salary, her job was to cook and deliver coffee. We were not satisfied with the quality of the coffee and the speed of the service, so we concluded a contract with her as with an entrepreneur. The coffee is now very good, and she has increased the number of services so that he brings us juices and pastries, and this summer we also had excellent cold coffee", said Horvat, stating that the labor market should be more flexible and under the influence of competition.

Đukanović agreed with him and announced solutions to dilemmas and business barriers from labor legislation next year.

On December 22, a part of the Labor Law enters into force, which stipulates that employers with all employees, with whom they concluded a fixed-term employment contract for more than two years, must conclude an indefinite contract or terminate the employment relationship.

Mobile operators are angry with the Ministry over taxes

The executive director of Telenor Montenegro, Mike Malvebo, complained about the lack of transparency and the lack of communication with the Ministry of Finance regarding the announcements they received from the media that could burden the communications industry.

He asked the prime minister to mediate in communication with the ministry, which Đukanović promised him. The Ministry of Finance announced last week that from next year, the tax of one euro on mobile phones could be replaced by a tax of five or seven percent on all accounts with more than five or ten euros, which they are still analyzing.

The tax law expires at the end of the year, and the opposition and SDP have announced that they will not accept its extension, which is why the government has announced that they are analyzing the tax that would replace it.

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