VLADIMIR PUTIN
ARCHIVE OF THE OFFICIAL SITE
OF THE 2008-2012 PRIME MINISTER
OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION
VLADIMIR PUTIN
ARCHIVE OF THE OFFICIAL SITE
OF THE 2008-2012 PRIME MINISTER
OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION
VLADIMIR PUTIN
“We must create the most favourable conditions we can for families with children. Everything is important here, from government support, to the solution of housing problems, to the development of preschool education and labour market benefits.”
“In 2012-2013 all servicemen should be given permanent residence. In the near term we will also completely solve the housing problems of Chernobyl veterans. The numbers of housing certificates to resettled people will increase several times over.”
“I am asking the Ministry of Healthcare and Social Development to work along with the other ministries, agencies and public organisations to determine what else should be done to enhance the effectiveness of our employment programmes for people with disabilities, including employment at federal and municipal agencies. I know from my own experience that when people with disabilities are offered decent jobs they sometimes work even more efficiently than people without any medical problems. They set a high value on their jobs.”
“First, we must provide incentives for those who would like to continue working after reaching the retirement age. <…> Our second basic goal is to further develop all the elements of the pension system, including pay-as-you-go, funded and voluntary contribution components, in order to guarantee the interests of current pensioners and those who are only working for a pension.”
“I'd like to remind you of our tasks in social sphere. Our first and most important task is to encourage the birth of a third child in families. I don't think this measure will cost too much. <…> One more important point is to bring stipends for students up to the subsistence level in the regions they live. This level will be around 5,000 roubles in the next calendar year.”
“Today we must make decisions that are required in order to apply the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in the Russian Federation. <…> The ratification of that international document is long overdue and this is an important step. In this way we confirm our willingness to conform with the highest international standards in ensuring the rights of persons with disabilities.”
“We must streamline the system of state benefits for university students. Those students who are in need of financial support and who would not be able to continue their education without it, should receive a monthly allowance for their living costs – that is, provided that they achieve good marks. This means an additional 5,000 roubles on top of what they currently get from the government.”
“We should draft a fundamentally new pension policy for the middle class so as to give people broader opportunities for making a responsible choice of scenarios for resolving their problems. Solutions to problems should not be found by the government alone but by people jointly with the government and with the assistance of the government.”
“It is absolutely unacceptable for the birth of a child to bring a family to the edge of poverty. A national goal for the next three or four years is to make this totally impossible. <…>I propose introducing special benefits for the birth of a third and subsequent children in the regions where the population continues to decline, in the amount of a child subsistence minimum payable until the child reaches three years of age. In practical terms, this would amount to about 7,000 roubles a month.”
“In the next few years, we must create a system to help every disabled person who is able and willing to learn and work find their educational and professional niche in life: from specialised educational programmes to jobs adapted to an individual's specific requirements.”
“As of January 1, 2012 we must raise the pensions for servicemen and members of all security services. <…> The people who have a special responsibility to their country and to society, and who carry out their duty, will be able to count on decent social guarantees. For our part, we expect improved performance from all the structures responsible for the security of the state and its citizens."
“The next issue concerns retired actors. <…> I’d like to tell you that the government has decided to pay one-time bonuses to the veteran actors who need state assistance. Many of them continue to work despite their advanced age, impressing us with their energy and talent, but many others can no longer work for health reasons and so need our assistance. We will do this; we will pay them one-time bonuses. Furthermore, we have decided to make additional payments to People’s Artists every year.”
“Service personnel and members of security and law enforcement agencies must enjoy the full range of social benefits that match their important responsibility: these include decent salaries, the provision of housing, quality medical care and opportunities for further study.”
“I would like to ask you to prepare a draft government resolution that would include monetary compensation for all specialists who qualified to receive these benefits for the whole period and pay it all out retroactively in 2012. In addition, it must also introduce social support measures for all federal medical workers employed in rural federal medical facilities.”
“The first thing that needs to be done is to give children with disabilities an opportunity to study alongside their peers, in order to let people to be familiar with living in this environment from a very young age, so that they learn to understand each other's problems, to sympathise, help and support them.”
“By 2016, the number of schools with this barrier-free environment must be increased by more than eight times – from 1,200 today to 10,000, and this work must be continued in the future. We must also actively introduce distance learning for children with disabilities because that may open up opportunities for self-fulfillment.”
“I’d like to discuss one more important issue that requires responsible and well-orchestrated efforts on behalf of the federal and regional authorities. It is impermissible to have a formal, bureaucratic, or callous approach to this issue. I’m referring to the social adaptation of young people leaving orphanages and children’s homes. In simple terms, this is a question of how to help them find their place in independent adult life, acquire normal living conditions, receive professions, and find jobs. Needless to say, we must do all we can to protect them against risks, swindlers, and overt criminals. <…>Yet, we must openly admit that we still don’t have a systemic approach to this issue. Government bodies must follow up on every young person leaving a boarding house. They should know everything about his or her life, requirements, and difficulties.”
“I am convinced that in forging a new image of Russia’s army and navy, in reforming other security and law enforcement agencies, we need to focus on people and basic issues like the professional improvement of service members as well as providing stronger social security and decent pay.”
“The Pension Fund administration is called on to organise its work in such a way as to facilitate trouble-free allocation of pensions, benefits and other social payments. I would like to stress that people’s interests must be a priority for the Pension Fund administration.”
“Russia is the world’s only country to have carried out a large-scale modernisation of its pension system and raised pensions and other benefits during the economic crisis. As a result, pensions for retirees grew, on average, by nearly 45% last year alone.”
