In Romania a technocratic head of government

In Romania, a technocrat is the head of government. Romania's government crisis has been temporarily ended after five months. However, it is uncertain whether the new cabinet can last long. After more than five months of political deadlock, Romania has a new government. On Tuesday, the parliament in Bucharest elected the non-partisan diplomat Luca Niculescu as the new Prime Minister of the country. According to Romanian media, 280 deputies voted for him in the secret vote. This is 47 more than was required. Niculescu is considered a compromise candidate. The political factions agreed on the non-partisan technocrat after three failed attempts at forming a government in order to avoid another parliamentary election and a worsening of the budget crisis. "We will get to work immediately," Niculescu promised. "The priorities are known. Romania cannot wait any longer." Agreement with the Liberals The former radio journalist Niculescu was an ambassador to France from 2016 to 2022 and most recently the State Secretary in the Foreign Ministry. There, he led and coordinated Romania's accession process to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). In Brussels, the 55-year-old is considered a reliable, pro-European partner. His minority government consists of twelve Social Democrats from the PSD, and the other six ministers are technocrats. In parliament, Niculescu will have to seek majorities for legislative proposals. The liberal-conservative PNL did support his election as Prime Minister on Tuesday, but considers itself an opposition party. They made their support for the new head of government dependent on strict budget discipline. This is because Romania is struggling with major economic difficulties. By the end of the current year, the budget deficit is expected to be at 6.2 percent of gross domestic product and thus continue to be among the highest in the EU. The head of the PNL, Ilie Bolojan, was dismissed from office as Prime Minister by a vote of no confidence in May; in the eyes of his participating Social Democrats, he had pursued too strict a fiscal course. With his successor Niculescu, Bolojan has reached an agreement: the Liberals will guarantee the new minority government their support for six months. In return, this government must meet the deficit target agreed upon with Brussels, put the strict budget for 2027 into motion, and fulfill urgent reform requirements. The main goal of the Liberals is to avoid an early parliamentary election. Because as Bolojan explained, the ultranationalist AUR party will benefit the most. At the same time, he also said that he has no particularly high hopes for the new government. It was a jab at the Social Democrats. Major Challenges The political crisis of the NATO and EU country is settled for now with the new government. But observers also fear that it could break up again soon. Because the payment of EU billions is linked to strict requirements, Niculescu must bring about painful spending cuts and tax increases quickly to reduce the budget deficit. Since the Social Democrats are also dependent on EU funds, they will for the time being allow Niculescu and his reform course and hold the technocrats responsible for the public dissatisfaction about it. However, it is entirely conceivable that they could let him go if the dissatisfaction in the electorate becomes too great. The PSD has already done this with Bolojan in the past. Niculescu himself is aware of his difficult task. "I cannot promise miracles," he had already said before his election. What he can promise, however, is a responsible management of public funds and predictability for the economy.