AmCham Daily Newswire

DP Caucus takes a break to review proposed budget amendments

Summary: During the Standing Committee meeting to discuss the Budget, the Minister of Finance B. Choijilsuren introduced eight proposed changes to the Tax Law. He further explained that by implementing these draft changes, the state budget will increase by 214.1 billion MNT in 2017, 212.2 billion MNT in 2018, and 210.4 billion MNT in 2019. The nation’s net loss has reached 2 billion MNT and the Minister highlighted that the situation was much worse than they expected and noted that they had no choice but to propose such strict measures to save the economy. Head of DP Caucus MP S. Erdene proposed to take a break for DP to study the draft amendments in detail and the Minister of Finance offered to give an explanation on each category on the proposed amendment. Minister B. Choijilsuren clarified that the announcement to the public about the current economic decline was not to defame the DP and stated that this topic should not be politicized. Head of Standing Committee on the Budget Ch. Khurelbaatar granted permission to take a break until the end of Monday so that the DP may review the proposals.

Keywords: government stability, budget amendment Daily News /pages 4/

MP D. Erdenebat – ‘MPP was aware of the situation’

Summary: MP D. Erdenebat shared his position on the proposed budget amendments and noted that both parties should be held accountable for the current economic decline. However, he considers the proposed budget amendment to be too irresponsible for trying to compensate the budget deficit by taking from citizens’ pocket. The MP added that he is disappointed about the delay of the effective dates of the Law on Criminal Offense and the Law on Joint Pension, which were initiated and approved during the previous Parliament. MP D. Erdenebat concluded that the MPP was well aware of the economic situation and noted that during the coalition government, the current Prime Minister served as a Minister of Finance.

Keywords: government policy, economic decline The Century News /pages 2/

Mongolia needs to improve the quality of its meat

Summary: Over the last 20 years, Mongolia’s livestock numbers have nearly tripled and it is expected to reach 75 million by the end of 2016. However, Mongolia supplies only half of its national dairy demand and does not supply 100% of its meat demand. During the 5^th International Scientific Conference, held under the theme Sustainable Development of Agriculture and Economy, researchers reiterated that over the years, Mongolia has only concentrated on increasing the number of livestock and not the quality. Approximately 30 scientists from 8 countries agree that Mongolia needs to concentrate on the quality of livestock, particularly the breed and descent. They also highlighted the importance of growing the best breed of goats and camels, noting the quality of their cashmere.

Keywords: meat, international trade The Official Gazette /page 11/

D. Munkhtur – ‘I was dismissed due to the Erdenes Tavan Tolgoi case’

Summary: Former Director of Authority for Fair Competition and Consumer Protection (AFCCP) D. Munkhtur, who was recently replaced by B. Lhagvaa, revealed that he suspects his dismissal is related to the investigation of the Erdenes Tavan Tolgoi case. The AFCCP started investigating Erdenes Tavan Tolgoi last week and D. Munkhtur’s term was supposed to officially end in December. D. Munkhtur noted that there are a few suspicious aspects of the case, but explained that he cannot announce it publicly until the investigation is complete.

Keywords: Erdenes Tavan Tolgoi, law enforcement Daily News /page 7/

MP S. Erdene – ‘MPP is violating their action plan’

Summary: Head of DP Caucus MP S. Erdene made a speech during the irregular session today. He stated that the announcement made by the Ministers and the Governor of Bank of Mongolia regarding the economic situation caused the prices of Government issued bonds to drop drastically. It also increased the exchange rate of the USD against the MNT from 2,050 to 2,250. Not only do the proposed draft amendments violate the interests of the public, entrepreneurs, businesses, civil servants, and students, but it also breaches the MPP’s own action plan introduced during the 2016 parliamentary election. Additionally, MP S. Erdene criticized the MPP for trying to solely blame the DP for the current economic situation and claimed that he is the living witness who can prove otherwise.

Keywords: government stability, irregular session www.medee.mn