The draft budget for 2002 is about five thousand pages long, First Deputy Head of the Yabloko faction in the State Duma Sergei Ivanenko told journalists.

According to Ivanenko, one copy of this document, including all the appendices, was brought to the Duma in three boxes of paper.

Ivanenko also noted that about 10 packages of paper are required for each copy of the budget. One package of paper costs about 100 roubles: therefore one copy of the budget costs about 1,000 roubles, i.e. USD 30-35.

Furthermore there are 450 deputies in the Duma. Consequently USD15 thousand will be spent to supply every deputy with a copy.

Such expenditures, noted Ivanenko, will cover only the cost of the paper and only the first reading of the budget. Then the Duma will conduct two more readings of the draft budget and there will be several thousand amendments to the second and third readings.

Ivanenko expressed his surprise that the document had to be brought to the Duma in boxes of paper; when every deputy has a computer and the text could be procured and read in an electronic version.

This order demonstrates that the country “is not concerned about its forestry at all”, added Ivanenko.

Based on Interfax reports.

See also:

Budget 2002