Belka outlines government's commitment to remedying economic plight

Finance Minister Marek Belka told parliament yesterday that revenues this year may be zl.11 billion less than was anticipated in the amended budget for 2001. He said, "We expect that we may balance this gap by certain savings in the costs of foreign debt servicing." The Minister described the outlook for Poland's public finances as the "most dramatic" in the last ten years because of economic stagnation and high unemployment, the breakdown in investment and the rapid slowing of exports. Belka said, "It's the task of the government to drive the country out of the desperate situation, to repair public finances, and to create the foundations for a return to balanced development." (Rzeczpospolita, p. B1) P.W.