Deputy PM ‘will not stop’ until customs reform passed in parliament
The newly appointed deputy prime minister of Ukraine has vowed to do everything possible to ensure that the parliament passes the draft law on car customs clearance through the Diia e-government platform.
In an interview with LIGA.net, Mykhailo Fedorov expressed his regret that the first version of the draft law on customs clearance was voted down by the MPs in late February.
"I hope that the problem is the imperfection of the law and our communication with MPs; In some cases, there were not enough votes because there were not enough people to vote," Mr Fedorov said.
He added that he did not want to believe that the draft law had not been passed because of vested interest, but "USD 50 to 150 million in bribes are paid in this area every year."
The ministry of digital transformation of Ukraine is currently working on an updated version of the draft law and will be monitoring its discussion, Mr Fedorov assured.
"There is no guarantee that it [the draft law] will be adopted. But there is a guarantee that we will not stop until this law is adopted," the Deputy Prime Minister added.
"I am simply sure that when the first digital service of this format appears at customs, the irreversible transformation of our customs and its transformation into a service organisation will begin."
Customs reform has been a contentious topic in Ukraine for a long time. While customs duties account for one of the largest sources of budget income, it has long been considered fertile ground for corruption.