Romania’s government is under increased scrutiny as Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan projects the country’s budget deficit to surpass 8% by the end of 2025, when outstanding debts are included-substantially above the targeted 3% goal for 2030. The declaration has intensified political debates, with opposition leaders accusing the government of financial manipulation adn mismanagement, amid ongoing clashes over budget practices and governance.
Romania’s Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan indicated Friday that the country’s budget deficit will “very likely” exceed 8% by the end of 2025, once outstanding debts are factored in for 2026. The statement comes amid scrutiny of the nation’s financial health and debate over budgetary practices. “Please remember that in 2024, the deficit had two components. First, it was 8.7% on a cash basis, and then, when arrears and debts were added, it became 9.3%,” the Prime Minister said, responding to accusations of “accounting trickery” from leaders of the Social Democratic Party (PSD) regarding the budget.
Bolojan directly addressed PSD President Sorin Grindeanu, explaining that the announced deficit is a cash-basis figure and represents an interim stage. He clarified that the final calculation will occur in March, when debts carried over into 2026 are included. “When these debts are also recorded, we will very likely exceed an 8% deficit,” he stated. “Currently, we have a cash-basis budget deficit of 7.7%, and when these outstanding arrears are added, there will be several percentage points, and we will certainly have a larger deficit.”
The Prime Minister also emphasized the importance of reducing the deficit, noting Romania’s commitment to reaching 3% by 2030. “The lower you reduce the situation, the lower the effects will be this year, because Romania has committed to reaching a deficit of 3% in 2030,” he explained, drawing an analogy to descending a staircase.
Bolojan highlighted the collaborative effort involved in achieving these reductions, crediting all ministers and parliamentarians who supported relevant legislation. “Without reducing spending in administration, without reducing the allowance for hazardous working conditions, without the 10% reduction in European funds, without the measures taken in education, we could not have reduced salary expenses from 14.2-14.3 billion in one month to 13.6 billion in recent months, in such a way as to have a downward trend in salary expenses, and so on. These are the realities,” he said.
Romania’s Outstanding Debts Heading into 2026
Bolojan detailed the debts that will contribute to the deficit exceeding 8% at the end of last year, citing outstanding payments in the energy sector and for unpaid medical leave. He noted that Romania pays approximately 6 billion lei (1.2 billion euros) annually for medical leave.
Achieving the deficit target was crucial, the Prime Minister added, as Romania has regained credibility with financial markets after previously failing to meet its commitments. “It was an important objective, and this contributes to lowering the interest rates Romania pays,” he underscored.
PSD Accuses Bolojan of “Accounting Tricks”
In recent weeks, several PSD leaders have launched a series of attacks against the government and the Prime Minister. Party President Sorin Grindeanu has been particularly vocal. When asked Wednesday evening during an appearance on Antena3 CNN if “Romanians have been victims of a scam,” he responded, “Yes, but a more elaborate one. We have said from the beginning that investments must continue. And they have continued. Of course, with these struggles that you have transmitted. Investments must continue, for example, Anghel Saligny. To give an example, where the strongest battle was. And they paid, it is true, until the system closed on October 2nd. But they were paid on time.”
On Tuesday, the PSD President stated he expected no one in the government to boast about a potential deficit for 2025 that is lower than the one committed to the European Commission, arguing that “you cannot boast that you have cut investments and increased taxes and duties.”
On Monday, Lia Olguța Vasilescu, a prominent PSD leader, suggested during an interview on Digi24 that the party’s continued participation in the governing coalition was uncertain. “We don’t want a scandal, but when nothing is taken into account and Mr. Bolojan only informs us how he believes Romania should be managed, forgetting that the PSD has almost 50% of the coalition, it is not right. Someone with 11% cannot ignore the PSD,” she said.
Also on Monday, Claudiu Manda, the second-highest-ranking official in the party, stated on Antena 3 CNN that people are noticing the Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan “doesn’t consult with anyone and that some of the new measures (ed. – social democrats) we are trying to correct, others have slipped through our fingers.” He and Vasilescu are among the longest-serving leaders in the party.
“I don’t want to say, speaking plastically, that Mr. Bolojan sings and we dance, but rather that he doesn’t sing from the same playlist, that we are dancing, but listening, and that a moment will come when we will say ‘Let’s change the musician because it doesn’t work, it doesn’t respect the playlist,’” Manda added.
One of the harshest attacks on Bolojan came from former Prime Minister and PSD President Marcel Ciolacu.
Ciolacu subsequently accused Prime Minister Bolojan of “sacrificing people, lying to institutions, and manipulating figures.”
