Akhir 20, 1432 H/March 25, 2011, SPA -- Poland's lower house of parliament passed pension reforms Friday that are intended to cut the public debt and avoid mandatory austerity measures, according to dpa. The reforms aim to reduce the country's public debt and keep it from going over 55 per cent of the gross domestic product - the threshhold at which Poland would be forced under law to implement austerity measures. The reforms cut contributions paid into private pension funds from 7.3 per cent to 2.3 per cent of monthly salaries. The remaining 5 per cent will be put into ZUS, the state-run social security fund, to be paid out to those currently retired. The reform plan will keep Poland from having to borrow 190 billion zloty (67.1 billion dollars) from now until 2020 to cover current retirement payments, the government has said. A poll published Tuesday showed that some 54 per cent of Poles were against the reforms, while 13 per cent were in favour. Prominent economists have spoken out against the reforms, saying they will cut the size of future pensions. The reforms will now go to the Senate. If passed, they will take effect in May.
