Development: On 10 September the coordinator of the left-wing Movimiento Regeneración Nacional (Morena) party in Mexico’s federal lower chamber of congress, Mario Delgado, announced spending cuts that he claimed would generate savings of M$409m (US$21.2m) over the course of the next three months leading up to the investiture of President-elect Andrés Manuel López Obrador on 1 December.
Significance: Morena congressional leaders are setting about implementing the ‘Republican austerity plan’ promised by López Obrador, but deeper cuts will be required elsewhere if the incoming government is going to deliver on electoral campaign promises. At the moment the savings announced amount to small beer given that López Obrador has vowed to save a massive M$500bn (US$26.4bn) by cutting expenditure, and ending corruption and privileges. He has promised to channel the additional funds into social welfare programmes, such as universal pensions and youth development.
- Delgado said that the savings of M$409m would be made by means of reducing foreign and domestic travel, and by eliminating a series of privileges enjoyed by federal deputies, such as life insurance, medical bills, fuel vouchers, and meal allowances.
- Delgado’s initiative follows a similar announcement last week by the coordinator of the Morena bench in the senate, Ricardo Monreal, to generate savings of M$599m (US$30.6m) for the rest of this year, and a further M$1.4bn (US$71.4m) next year.
- Monreal also announced on 10 September that allowances for senators would be reduced to M$105,000 a month, and that 10% of this would go to Morena. Rival opposition parties criticised this partisan use of public funds, although it is worth noting that only last month Morena’s national party president, Yeidckol Polevnsky, said that the party would receive as much as 50% of the allowances of its federal legislators as part of the Republican austerity plan. The funds raised in this way will apparently go towards improving state schools.
Looking Ahead: Further spending cuts are expected to be announced in the coming weeks. Morena is determined to lead by example and demonstrate that significant savings can be made by eliminating congressional excesses and the privileges enjoyed by federal legislators.
