Page 47 - RusRPTMar21

As a result, the share of household income directly dependent on the budget has increased to the historical high of 36% in 2020, up from 33% in 2019 and 22% in 2006.
The fiscal room for additional social support appears limited, with 2020 enlarged budget spending at a post 2009 high of 40% GDP, and household income support measures at a historical high of 22% GDP, while a fiscal consolidation guided for 2021-23.
Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin approved a new program to subsidize payrolls to retain employees on March 1. The government plans to spend RUB 7.7bn on subsidizing the interest rate, reducing it to 3% per year. The loans are contingent on companies retaining 90% of their staff during the term of the loan. Entrepreneurs and companies can apply for the program from 9 March to 1 July for loans lasting at most 12 months. The size of the loans is calculated as a month’s minimum wage per worker, per month, but no more than RUB 500mn for any one company. The new program will replace the one that began in April 2020, which had similar terms but lower interest rates (2% per year), as well as stricter criteria for enterprises to receive loans. This time, the government plans to provide such loans not only to SMEs but also to large companies in the least recovered sectors, such as hospitality, restaurants, culture, tourism, sports and entertainment.
47 RUSSIA Country Report March 2021 www.intellinews.com