Plenković: The Government is a true vanguard for our society to be orderly and stable

Prime Minister Andrej Plenković called on the opposition at a government session to reduce tensions in political rhetoric, which, he said, have contributed to strong polarization in society.

“We believe that the parliamentary majority and the Government are a true vanguard for our society to be orderly and stable, serious and normal; we will continue such a policy with the clear intention of contributing to reducing tensions, often unnecessary, and avoiding all possible incidents that we have witnessed,” said Prime Minister Andrej Plenković.

He reminded that "we live in a time of continuous economic growth, high employment and low unemployment".

Plenković: Budget revenues in 2026 at 35.7 billion euros, and expenditures at 39.8 billion euros

“The state budget revenues for 2026 are planned at 35.7 billion euros, and expenditures amount to 39.8 billion euros,” said Prime Minister Andrej Plenković at a government session on Thursday, presenting the government's proposal for the state budget for 2026.

“The state budget revenues for 2026 are planned at 35.7 billion euros, which is an increase of 2.7 billion euros compared to the plan for 2025. The budget expenditures for 2026 amount to 39.8 billion euros,” said Plenković.

“The increase in revenues is the result of strong economic growth and business activity and high employment, which allows for greater investments in citizens and all development priorities, but without disrupting fiscal stability,” he pointed out.

He added that the largest part of the expenditures go to areas that most directly support the standard of living of citizens.

“Thus, 10.2 billion euros were provided for pensions, which is an increase of one billion euros. By the end of this year, with the annual supplement, the overall average pension will exceed the 700 euro mark,” said Plenković.

8.8 billion euros are allocated for employee salaries, which means an increase of 400 million euros compared to 2025.

Allocations for demographic revitalization, i.e. an increase in parental leave benefits and a doubling of support for a newborn child, are increasing from 692 to 804 million euros, and social benefits and unemployment benefits amount to 1.5 billion euros.

“The budget,” as he said, “ensures investments in generators of sustainable growth in the economy, infrastructure, energy and other sectors, which ensure greater competitiveness, but also resilience to crises, including an increase in defense spending to 2.06 percent of GDP.”

“As in previous years, the new budget will be social, sustainable and developmental,” said Plenković.

Expected GDP growth of 2.7 percent

Speaking about the macroeconomic framework, Plenković said that in 2026, stable GDP growth of 2.7 percent is expected to continue, which means that Croatia remains among the fastest growing economies in the European Union.

According to the government's expectations, inflation should drop to 2.8 percent.

The government expects employment growth of 1.6 percent, a general government budget deficit of 2.9 percent of GDP, the same as this year, and public debt should fall to 56 percent of GDP.

“Croatia remains within the framework of European fiscal rules and shows that it is managing public finances responsibly,” said Plenković.

610 million euros of treasury bills subscribed in the first three days

“In the first three days of subscription of new treasury bills, 16,615 offers from citizens were received in the total amount of 610 million euros, of which 347 million euros were reinvested,” Prime Minister Andrej Plenković said at a government session on Thursday.

The new issue of treasury bills began on Monday. The maturity date is 364 days, the goal is to collect 1.2 billion euros, and the yield is 2.6 percent.

“In just over two years, 16 issues of securities have been issued, of which 13 series of treasury bills and three series of government bonds,” Plenković reminded.

According to him, citizens currently hold eight percent of the public debt, with more than 340 thousand investors subscribing to securities worth more than 11.4 billion euros.

“This redirected 323 million euros of interest to citizens, which would otherwise have gone to banks and other financial institutions,” Plenković said.

He also noted that last Friday, Moody's completed its periodic review of Croatia's rating and confirmed Croatia's A3 rating with a stable outlook.

Such a decision was justified by the moderate level of debt, strong institutions and governance, and the high level of per capita income.

Source: HRT