Governors fully capable of slashing spending, says Brazil finance minister
Finance Minister Henrique Meirelles said that the states' priority should be to focus on the result. 
Hours after the lower house approved a bill on restructuring the debts of states and the Federal District with the federal government, Finance Minister Henrique Meirelles said that the states' priority should be to focus on the result. The piece of legislation allows debt payment to be made in 20 years, provided that certain fiscal constraints are met. Meirelles said that governors have in their hands all the tools required for observing the spending ceiling. The statement was made Wednesday (Aug. 10), in Brasília.
“Focus on the result is key. The fiscal adjustment in the states is what's relevant. As is the case with the federal government, it's the ceiling for the increase in public spending for the years,” the minister said, pointing out that if a state disregards the ceiling, it must once again pay the debt in its original .
“Fortunately, Brazil is under a democracy, and congress have the prerogative to make relevant decisions, with the government having the duty of indicating the measures,” Meirelles noted.
In a note released in the morning, the minister declared that the negotiation with the states are “the first concrete step towards the structural adjustment of Brazilian public debts in decades.”
Meirelles mentioned that the confidence of economic agents in the Brazilian economy “is starting to grow vigorously,” adding that the Brazilian crisis was born in the country, unlike the international economic crisis of 2008 and the crisis of the 30's, with the collapse of the New York stock exchange. In his judgment, however, reaching the right diagnosis was instrumental, since the confidence of businesspeople and consumers “was plunging systematically up to some two months ago.”
Translated by Fabrício Ferreira
Fonte: Governors fully capable of slashing spending, says Brazil finance minister
