Brasília, December 31, 2003 (Agência Brasil - ABr) - The Minister of Planning, Guido Mantega, said today that readjustment of the minimum wage will only be discussed next April. Following a meeting that lasted about two hours with President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, at the Alvorada Palace, the Minister declared that no comments were made on this topic. "That discussion will be held in April, based on the situation in April," he affirmed.

According to observations made by members of Congress, the budget approved by the National Congress would give the government maneuvering room to raise the minimum wage to R$ 276. According to Mantega, his meeting with the President was to evaluate the implementation of the budget so far. The Minister said that in this first year in office, the government implemented 99% of the projected budget. Around 94% of the total planned amount was spent, according to him. "The execution was very efficient, perhaps even exceeding expectations. All the Ministries functioned well, so it was very good for the first year," he said.

The Minister affirmed that the government will have more funds for investments in 2004, and he guaranteed that the budget will not be placed on a contingency footing. According to him, President Lula is satisfied with what he was able to accomplish this year but is already thinking about next year. "He wants 2004 to be much better. We shall carry out more things; with the country growing and government revenues increasing, we shall carry out more social programs," he assured.

Mantega also said that President Lula will, indeed, spent New Year's in Brasília. (DAS)