The idea of ​​increasing the minimum pension in Ukraine to 4,000 hryvnias has gained new meaning

The idea of ​​increasing the minimum pension in Ukraine to 4,000 hryvnias has gained new meaning thanks to the initiative of the chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Finance, Tax and Customs Policy Danylo Getmantsev. According to him, to implement this step, the state will need to attract approximately 2.2 billion hryvnias in addition every month. In annual terms, this is more than 26 billion.

Getmantsev acknowledged that the level of pensions in Ukraine is one of the most acute social problems. In the current conditions of martial law, the situation has become even more complicated, because almost the entire amount of tax revenues is directed to providing for the army. "Every penny from taxes goes to the front," he explained, emphasizing the critical state of state finances.

Despite the difficult economic situation, the state annually indexes pensions, the deputy emphasized. However, according to him, this does not solve the main problem - the unacceptably low level of the minimum pension, which currently amounts to only 2,300 hryvnias. "This amount cannot be considered adequate for living conditions, even in peacetime," said Getmantsev.

He stated that increasing the minimum pension to 4,000 hryvnias is a difficult but necessary task that the state must complete in order to reduce social tension and ensure decent living conditions for the elderly. At the same time, he pointed to potential sources of financing for such a step.

One of the main reserves for ensuring financing, according to Getmantsev, is removing the tobacco market from the shadows. The state budget losses from the shadow circulation of tobacco amount to approximately the same amount that is needed to increase pensions - more than 2 billion hryvnias per month.

The deputy considers the abolition of special pensions to be another direction for optimizing budget expenditures. "The abolition of preferential payments for certain categories may become an additional source for increasing the minimum, and therefore the average pensions in the country," he emphasized. According to Hetmantsev, it is necessary to reconsider the approach to the distribution of social resources in order to ensure greater fairness and equality in the pension system.