I hope that the zero percent loan has just become history – wrote Katarzyna Pełczyńska-Nałęcz, Minister of Funds and Regional Policy, on the website X on Wednesday. Earlier, the Ministry of Development announced that the deputy head of this ministry, Jacek Tomczak, resigned from his position.
“I hope that the 0 percent loan has become history. It's time for a good housing policy dictated by the interests of people, not developers,” wrote Katarzyna Pełczyńska-Nałęcz, Minister of Funds and Regional Policy, on the X website (formerly Twitter).
Resignation of the deputy minister
Earlier, the Ministry of Development and Technology announced the resignation of Deputy Minister Jacek Tomczak.
“This decision was made out of concern for the good and image of the ministry. The management of the Ministry of Tourism and Technology hopes that all doubts that have arisen in the media in recent hours will be immediately clarified,” resport said in a post on the X website (formerly Twitter).
Wirtualna Polska reported on Wednesday that Deputy Minister of Development Jacek Tomczak “has been cooperating with developers through his notary office for years.” The portal also pointed out that the solutions recommended by Deputy Minister Tomczak included in the start-up loan program (called a zero percent loan) “will lead to an increase in apartment prices, and developers will benefit most from it.”
In a statement provided to PAP, the Ministry of Development said that the head of the Ministry of Infrastructure and Technology, Krzysztof Paszyk, urgently summoned Jacek Tomczak to provide explanations and respond to media reports.
Tomczak emphasized in an interview with PAP that a year ago he suspended his notarial activities precisely – as he said – “to avoid such situations.”
– I haven't been doing it for a year, but, as you can see, in Poland, if someone has ever done business, unfortunately, for some hater circles he is inherently suspicious – said Tomczak. He emphasized that he did not want to function “in a climate of slander”, which is why he decided that the best solution would be to resign from the position of deputy minister of development and technology.
The minister has already said goodbye to the zero percent loan once
This is the next time when Minister Katarzyna Pełczyńska-Nałęcz says goodbye to the zero percent loan program. She did it for the first time, also in a post on the X website, almost exactly two months ago, after the government adopted the first version of the draft budget for 2025.
“We've got it! The Polish budget adopted by the government allocates PLN 4.3 billion for housing. That's over 50 percent more than this year! Good news: the budget includes PLN 0 for a 0 percent loan.” – she wrote on August 28.
The minister's entry caused a lot of confusion and the Prime Minister commented on it Donald Tusk.
– I saw posts on social media by Minister Pełczyńska-Nałęcz regarding a zero percent loan and funds in the budget for this project. The minister's statements on this issue are imprecise and the facts are different, Donald Tusk said at a press conference.
He added that he would expect “the minister to explain why she interpreted our decision, in which the minister participated, in a very imprecise way.” – When it comes to work on the so-called zero loan, because this name is a bit of a simplification, they are the most advanced and are already being processed within the government. So in that sense it's exactly the opposite, he said.
The zero percent loan divides the coalition
The coalition has different visions of what support for housing programs should look like. The draft budget for 2025 earmarks PLN 4.28 billion for housing construction, of which PLN 1.6 billion is in reserves. – Depending on what decisions will be processed, the funds will be redirected appropriately – said recently Deputy Minister of Finance Hanna Majszczyk.
Due to the flood, we postponed the discussion on the final shape of the housing program for several weeks – said the Minister of Development and Technology, Krzysztof Paszyk, at the end of September in the “Rozmowa Piaseckiego” program on TVN24. However, he declared that the solution prepared by his ministry “is still on the table.” – So far, nothing has happened to suggest that there will be no funds for the implementation of this program next year – he assured.
Main photo source: Paweł Supernak/PAP