The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine has decided to allocate 10% of banks' profits to the state budget, which has also affected Kyiv. The city administration said that it was about 8 billion hryvnias, which were supposed to go to roads, transport, schools and hospitals. This caused a wave of criticism and talk of a possible increase in travel tariffs in the capital.
However, as Kyiv City Council deputy Andriy Vitrenko claims, such rhetoric is just manipulation by Mayor Vitali Klitschko's team.
According to Vitrenko, Kyiv's budget is in surplus and every year the city does not have time to use up significant remaining funds. He recalled that:
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in 2020, UAH 3.7 billion remained in the accounts,
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in 2021 — 5.6 billion,
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in 2022 — 11.4 billion,
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in 2023 — 8.2 billion,
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and in 2024 - a record 15.3 billion UAH.
“ That is, no one took anything from the city. This is money that the Kyiv City State Administration itself could not spend ,” the deputy emphasized.
Vitrenko clarified that the amount of 8 billion is just a calculation announced by Klitschko's team. In fact, we are talking about 10% of the banks' profits, which cannot be accurately predicted: " It could be several million or several billion - it will become clear only at the end of the year. Therefore, the figure of 8 billion is hypothetical, not real ."
The MP also expressed skepticism regarding the claims about increasing the fare. He believes that the authorities should first provide economically justified calculations of the fare, because the current claims are a "manipulative story."
Thus, according to Vitrenko, there is no “budget hole” in the capital. There are only long-term balances in the accounts and the desire of Klitschko’s team to shift responsibility to others.
