The deputies of the State Duma of the Russian Federation voted in the first reading for the bill on pension reform. This happened during today's plenary meeting of the lower house of parliament. In support of the legislative initiative, 327 elected people voted, 102 voted against, 1 abstained. The meeting was broadcasted on the website of the State Duma. The vote was preceded by a discussion with the participation of the speaker of the chamber, representatives of the factions and the Minister of Labor and Social Protection of the Russian Federation. In his speech, the head of the Ministry of Labor, Maxim Topilin, reported that the ultimate goal of amending the pension legislation is to increase pensions. "By the year 2024. the ratio of the pension of a non-working pensioner will be about 200% of the pensioner's subsistence level, and now, I recall, we are with you 163-164%. This will allow us to change the situation with pension provision very seriously, "the official said.. According to him, pension reform in the Russian Federation is, unlike Western countries, not an anti-crisis measure, but a concern for the future, in order "to balance and ensure the insurance character of the pension system for the future".

The current possibilities of the Pension Fund of the Russian Federation make it possible to maintain the existing balance between wages and pensions and to compensate for inflation, but do not allow to accept "no breakthrough solutions". An alternative to the current proposal is to increase the rates of contributions to the Pension Fund, but this option was previously deemed inappropriate.

Therefore, without pension reform is indispensable. There is simply no other option, stated Topilin. First deputy chairman of the faction "United Russia" Andrei Isaev recalled from the rostrum that the bill allows you to return the pension to its original value. Now it has turned into a payment for old age, and was originally a compensation for the loss of ability to work. Now millions of pensioners work, but they receive pensions. To deprive them of payments, the state will not, therefore, as a compromise option, it is necessary to adjust the current terms of retirement. "If we give up what the government is offering today, we will give up decent pensions. Therefore, we adopted a consolidated decision and will vote "for", - said the politician. "This is a situation where we restore a real pension, pay it really lost work capacity, and it really can be lived," - quotes Isaev's "The Fifth Channel". Speaker of the State Duma Vyacheslav Volodin said that the State Duma Committee on Labor decided to extend the period for providing amendments to the second reading of the draft law on pension reform. Comments and proposals will be accepted not until August 18, as originally planned, but before September 24. Leaders of opposition factions in their speeches said they do not support changes in pension legislation. Therefore, representatives of these parties voted against the bill. According to the government's proposal, Russian men by 2028. will retire at 65 years, and women by 2034 g.

- 63 years. Approval of the draft law on pension reform in the first reading clarifies the basic norms of the initiative. Then the document will be amended and amended by experts and society. After that, consideration will be given in the second and third readings (the date of voting has not yet been determined). If the draft law is adopted by the State Duma, then it will be submitted for approval by the Federation Council and for signature to the president of the country.