MOSCOW, October 8 (RAPSI) – Russia’s Government needs to select industries affected by the pandemic not by micromanagement on the basis of the National Classifier of Types of Economic Activity, but proceeding from tax reports, Business Rights Commissioner Boris Titov believes.

Earlier, the World Bank has put in question the policies pursued by Russia’s Government as to the support of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) amid the pandemic. The World Bank observed that this support was “too generous.”

World Bank experts noted that taking into account the fact that under sanctions introduced with respect to Russia the growing debt burden of the national budget may become too heavy to bear; therefore, the scarce resources allocated to aid enterprises needed to be prioritized on those businesses that could drive the economy after the coronavirus crisis, like exporters, innovators, and so on.

Titov, in turn, is of the opinion that all the effort needs to be focused on propping up of consumer demand as it is rather social than economic issue. The Business Ombudsman believes that the debt burden in Russia is relatively light, so the measure is feasible.

At the same time he thinks the Government needs to change its approach as to the support provided to enterprises by automatically extending the support measures introduced this summer and determine those entitled to aid proceeding from the decline in proceeds registered over the last quarter at 30% or more.