Press Review - October 26, 2018

10.26.2018 By Oana Gavrila

Romanian Leu Loses Ground Vs Euro

The Romanian leu lost ground against the euro Thursday, standing 4.6622 lei/euro at midday, 0.07% lower compared with Wednesday's rate of 4.6590 units.

The leu also lost ground to the US dollar, to 4.0857 units Thursday from  4.0802 units on Wednesday.

The Romanian currency depreciated against the Swiss franc, to 4.0932 units on Thursday from 4.0919 units on Wednesday.

Dragnea Says There Is Pressure to Replace Justice Minister

Social Democrat Party leader Liviu Dragnea said there is pressure to replace justice minister Tudorel Toader but the issue has not been discussed within the party.

Dragnea had been asked about coalition partner Calin Tariceanu's proposition to have a justice minister who is not a party member.

“Regarding a technocrat minister, there is the insistence that minister Toader is problematic, although we have not talked about this within the party. We have to talk about it. I can't say this is a good or bad proposal. We have had a justice minister who was not a party member, Mrs. Raluca Pruna, and she was a good minister,” said Dragnea.

President Says Justice Minister’s Request To Dismiss General Prosecutor Is “Inadequate”

Romanian President Klaus Iohannis said the justice minister's request for the dismissal of prosecutor general Augustin Lazar, is completely inadequate.

The president again called for justice minister Tudorel Toader’s resignation for the second time in the past couple of weeks. Iohannis recently called on Toader to step down following a negative Venice Commission report on the country’s judicial reform process.

In a statement published by the Presidential Administration, the president says that he appreciates the activity of General Prosecutor Augustin Lazar.

“President Klaus Iohannis appreciates the activity of the General Prosecutor and considers that the request of the justice minister is completely inadequate and can cause of distrust in the system and concern for our European partners. The way in which the minister publicly presented the report is biased and shows his intention to politically subordinate prosecutors,” reads the statement.

Toader said Wednesday he would trigger the procedure to dismiss Lazar from office, after criticizing his activity in a 20-point assessment.

The proposal has a very high chance of leading to general prosecutor’s dismissal, as a similar request made in the case of former chief anticorruption prosecutor Laura Codruta Kovesi earlier this year ended with the Constitutional Court forcing the president to heed the minister’s recommendation, despite initially refusing to do so.

The decision also gave the justice minister the sole competency to decide on the reasoning of dismissing chief prosecutors, whereas the president previously had the right to refuse the minister's request.

Weather in Romania Gets Unseasonably Warm

Temperatures across Romania are expected to rise considerably over the next few days.

Some rain is expected in the north of Romania and the north and east of Transylvania, but winds are set to get milder except in high altitude mountain areas, where snow is also expected.

As of Friday, temperatures will rise to as much as 20 degrees Celsius, around 10 degrees higher than the seasonal average. In the western part of Romania, temperatures are expected to go as high as 28 degrees