The Ministry of Public Finance (MFP) only took into account a small number of the amendments to the fiscal code proposed by foreign investors, even though most of them were considered reasonable, and the consultation process was underwhelming, the members of the American Chamber of Commerce in Romania (AmCham România) and of the Council of Foreign Investors (CIS) said in a press conference yesterday.

Ionuţ Simion, the vice-president of AmCham, said: "I have made 220 proposals, six months before the legislation was amended, as stipulated by the law, and we have presented them to the Ministry of Public Finance. They were reviewed during technical discussions. Unfortunately, only a small number of them were taken into account by the Ministry of Finance". The proposals of the business sector concerned a few technical clarifications, as well as fiscal policy measures needed to improve the taxation system.

Ionuţ Simion added: "When we talk to them, the people of the Ministry nod their heads and go < yes, yes >, but when it comes to acting on our proposals, they say < no, no >. As for the technical proposals, the attitude of the Ministry of Finance is surprising to us, because this kind of behavior comes from people who implement the law. We think it is very hard for the people in the ministry to understand the way their colleagues in the ANAF construe the law. I find it hard to understand why they don"t enact these measures".

Lawyer Gabriel Biriş said: "They (ed. note: the Ministry of Finance) don"t want to take on responsibilities", and most of the time, they do not understand the measures which presented to them by specialists.

Şerban Toader, the vice-president of the Council of Foreign investors (CIS) hopes that the authorities will eventually take the proposals into account: "Only a small number of the suggestions were included. We look towards