At the Sberbank business breakfast they talked about “bummers making money” and the tyranny of the security forces during the war

The third day of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum began with the traditional Sber business breakfast, which brings together government officials, governors and business. German Gref every time holds an event in the format of a confidential dialogue between business and government - and this is a rare forum event that is still worth following.

The role of the main critic was traditionally played by the chairman of the State Duma Committee on Budget and Taxes, Andrei Makarov. He devoted most of his speech to the various barriers that businesses face today.

According to Makarov, even small enterprises in Russia today are buried under a huge number of regulatory requirements, including safety ones.

“In accordance with the Ministry of Labor Order 2022, you must assess the risks of employees falling due to balance. You have to consider mental stress and stress. And a very important, serious risk, especially in Sberbank, is a cut with a sheet of paper or a stationery knife. <…> When you read such instructions, you want to bang your head against the wall,” Makarov was indignant.

In Russia, among 3 million 170 thousand organizations, there are 380 authorized organizations that provide services for on-the-job training and preparation of special documents required from businesses in accordance with regulatory requirements.

“I tried to answer the question for myself: why do this? In order to give these living creatures that they created around themselves, to earn money. Probably also a goal. But I think this is for someone else. So that there is no business in the country that does not feel guilty in advance. Note, not guilty, but guilty. I didn’t feel like he was constantly violating anything,” Makarov said, practically shouting.

Makarov also touched upon the topic of institutions, a favorite among SPIEF participants, in particular the institution of protection of property rights, and criticized the current situation with it in Russia.

“There is a UN innovation index where we rank among the highest in terms of human capital. <…> In terms of institutions, I congratulate you, we have overtaken Venezuela, there is a certain movement forward. True, of course, it’s still difficult for us to compete with Lesotho. From 127th place we moved to 131st,” he lamented.

The check auctions of the nineties killed respect for the institution of private property, and the current privatization auctions with bearish games (the authorities previously tried to sell Domodedovo and Yuzhuralzoloto in the format of a Dutch auction) will not add trust to it, he believes.

Makarov ended his speech by criticizing the actions of law enforcement agencies, not being afraid to utter the word “war” at a business breakfast.

“I understand that the role of security forces during war is a completely different situation. Probably, maybe, it wouldn’t even be worth discussing, but the arbitrariness of the law enforcement system is also not the best background for solving those problems and creating the basis for successfully resolving those issues that Alexander Valentinovich Novak just spoke about,” the deputy said.

What is important to know

Every year, Deputy Makarov speaks at the Sberbank business breakfast with sharp criticism of the situation in the economy and in the relationship between business and government. In the same role, he traditionally conducts the main economic session at SPIEF. However, this year Makarov refrained from harsh criticism of the government and pressing questions.