Temer takes stock of major advances in interview

In addition to once again highlighting the importance of pension reform, President Michel Temer addressed issues such as public spending, security and employment in a wide-ranging interview given this Monday (January 29) to one of Brazil's top radio broadcasters. Check out the main points of this morning's interview below. 

Public Budget

In the president's view, the creation of the public spending ceiling was a responsible measure by his administration. "Our ceiling is for 20 years, revisable 10 years from now. In other words, we imagine that in 10 years we will be able to only spend what we earn," he said.

Employment

Noting that 1.4 million jobs were created in the economy in the last quarter and that unemployment fell from 1.55 million jobs in December 2016 to 28,000 in the same month of 2017, Temer assessed that creating more job opportunities depends on "the trust, the credibility, of national and foreign investors”.

Interest rates

Asked why interest rates for consumers are not following the recent fall in the Selic (Brazil's benchmark interest rate), Temer said he has met with Finance Minister Henrique Meirelles and Central Bank Governor Ilan Goldfajn to address the issue. "The interest rates are gradually falling," he said.

Armed forces providing public safety

"We've turned a lot of our eyes to public safety," Temer said while speaking of the operations conducted by the Armed Forces to assist Brazilian states in ensuring public safety. In order to extend this aid, the president announced that the government is currently assessing the possibility of creating a broader National Security Force, which could act in more delicate situations.

Modernisation

The president also mentioned that several countries have expressed strong interest in investing in Brazil. Programmes such as Time to Move Forward, for example, created a more favourable environment for more infrastructure investments and job creation in the country. "We eliminated prejudices against private enterprise," he said. "The State cannot do everything on its own; it has to rely on the private sector, and the private sector has risen to the occasion."