Three years ago, Vladimir Putin signed a decree on the national plan for the development of competition. The situation in the economy looked alarming. In 2015, it turned out that Russia was rapidly returned to the Soviet Union in terms of property. If in 2005 the state enterprises accounted for 35% of GDP, then in 2015 - already 70%. From the remaining partners, 30% can be reached for brackets of foreign capital, which quickly caring from the country after the Crimea, and all sorts of "kings of the state order", which, as one, are closely related to the state and the first persons. And take into account the shadow economy that reaches 20-25% of GDP. And then it turns out that in the equation there will be something like socialist Hungary or Yugoslavia, where simple mortals were allowed to own only small and medium enterprises, which, too, at any time could take away.
Oligarch Rockefeller
Developed countries have never forgotten what they are obliged to competition. At the beginning of the XV century, Europe looked out of the east. 700 thousand inhabitants lived in Beijing, and among the 10 largest cities in the world, there was only 200 thousand Paris. As the historian Nial Ferguson writes, 600 years ago on the Yangtze River passed to 12 thousand barges with rice, and the compendium of Chinese science numbered 11 thousand volumes. In China, they created a seeder for 2 thousand years before Jethro Talla, and the first domain furnace for the smelting of the cast iron - about 200 BC. e. The British only in 1788 were blocked by the production of iron indicators of an increase in 700-year-old presses. The fleet of the Chinese admiral Zheng HE at the beginning of the XV century took on board 28 thousand people and was larger than any Western to the First World War. But with 1500, the Chinese, seen in the construction of the vessel with more than two masts, sentenced to death. Coastal villages and cities have moved at least 15 km from the sea. The Chinese emperors were similar to our king Nicholas I, who refused to build railways, because the revolution can come to the country.
At the same time, the wealth of Western states grew due to competition. In Europe, the XVI century there were about 500 states. In 1500-1800 Spain fought 81% of time, England - 53%, France 52%. It would seem that this is not the best background for economic development. But weapon technologies developed, the strategy of warfare, which played a decisive role in the easy conquest of the colonies. Wars needed to pay - markets developed, joint stock companies, bonds, banking wisdom were invented. Tiny Portugal and Holland are more active in the process - the little is always harder and count no longer for anyone.
Even when capitalism developed and threatened to replace the governments and parliaments, the West did not forget that competition is all. John Rockefeller became the first dollar billionaire at the beginning of the 20th century, but his Standard Oil company in 1911 was abolished and divided into seven minor due to the anti-monopoly law. From the point of view of the market, this absurd man has declined for becoming the most successful American. But at the same time, Rockefeller nobody selected the assets, did not put him in prison, the White House did not arranged on Wall Street "Mask Show". The "Great Compression" of the 1940-1970s became in the United States by the time of socialist experiments, allowed by the epoch of Ronald Reagan, when the shackles of state control were rented from the business. And although today socialism and distribution again in fashion, Ilon Mask by 2021 became the richest American with a state of 200 billion dollars. At the same time, he is far from politics and state order. So, with competition in America is still not bad.
Quiet Omuta
According to this logic, the development of competition in Russia contradicts all the peculiarities of our capitalism. It is clear that without a private owner there is no real market, and without competition - effective production marked by high quality goods and a reasonable price. However, the number of state and municipal unitary enterprises in just three years tripled. Moreover, the brightest jerk occurred in not too prosperous 2013-2014, when the number of gups increased from 11, 2 to 25, 4 thousand. Usually the authorities in the crisis, on the contrary, sell assets to warm up the market and get funds to latch budget holes. And in 2012, the list of the largest companies to be privatized was expanded, but then, according to FAS, "plans changed." Although the conjuncture was successful, and the West Investor friendly on the eve of the Olympics in Sochi.
At this place, the brain of the reader can stand on the end: he was taught all his life that when the state takes something from begged bourgeois - it's good. The "Right" kings Peter first and Ivan the Terrible just were engaged in them - the lands to unite, all the powers - a sovereign, boyar - on the fell, treasure - in the treasury. In the 1990s, the people with the indignation of Roptal, that the largest plants go for a snacks with some rings that were later called oligarchs. And in the 2000s, the peak of Putin's popularity was liked, in which the return process was observed - the oligarchs were pressed, YUKOS was nationalized, a number of strategic factories were also returned to the treasury.
Why suddenly the recent head of FAS Igor Artemyev argued that "the state level in the economy reached the" red feature "? Yes, because our economy did not really grow up to all the 2010, having exhausted all the possibilities of effective development during expensive oil. And the exposure of Artemieva was not at all demarche. On the contrary, President Vladimir Putin was commissioned - to create a national competition development strategy.
Formal logic does not work here. On the one hand, the extension of state property is closely connected with the desire to extend the stay at the helm: control the assets, not allow the appearance of independent bourgeoisie and the middle class. On the other hand, the lack of growth and the impoverishment of the population makes toxic any regime that no jacks will help with empty refrigerators. Business should grow not only in Rosstat reports. And the Kremlin decided to see what would happen if you quit the hedgehog and a horny in one bank: to popularize competition among state-owned companies, accustomed to their competitive advantage the absence of this competition itself.
In the national plan proposed by Artemyevsky, the "National Plan" was a tough ideology: the presence on any competitive market for at least three companies, one of which should be private. The basic principles of proconcolitional state-named: reducing the share of state-owned companies in the economy, ensuring freedom of economic activity, support for the development of small and medium-sized businesses, accounting for the development of competition in state investment. In 2019, the law was signed on the ban on the creation of new GUPs until 2025. In accordance with government road cards, the share of GUP and MUPs in the housing and communal services market has begun and an increase in the share of private companies in the OMS system in health care.
True, the most important points have fallen out of the strategy: state monopolies it is not necessary to coordinate the investment programs from the FAS, the antimonopoly activity will not be the key in the work of the Prosecutor General's Office. Prosecutors have disappeared at all from the national plan, although in early editors they assigned the role of the "anti-billing coordinator". But most importantly: did not happen to the national campaign for competition, the proposal was not to actively cover the struggle with monopolists on federal television channels. Naturally, the entrepreneur never became a salt of the Earth, which pays taxes and salaries, crept defensiveness and contains officials. He continues to remain an unreliable passing, which only under the neot of the official behaves in humans. And what can be "development of competition"?
In fact, it was possible or not, you need to judge the dynamics of direct private investment in the Russian economy. If a private owner, as dyeing, dismisses money from the country, it means that there is not very competitive in it. If on TV we are constantly visible special forces in the offices of politically unconscious businessmen are a bad sign. And even if you demand Putin, do not plant businessmen in detention facilities, at least do not require - everything remains still. Come to him early in the morning, as under Stalin, when everyone slept, they searcate the dwelling in front of the fright children, take it into the investigative committee. During the day, they make a prosecution, a judge's sentence is received as two drops of water similar to the accusation of the investigator, and take off into the detention facility, where a normal person sits away from family and children. And it is tamped to admit even in anything! Otherwise I will not release! Why investigators and judges do not listen to the president? Why do prosecutors do not protest the actions of the investigators? Or in this and consists of competition - to plant someone needs and how much is needed?
- The average level of the share of the state sector in the economy is estimated at about 30% of GDP, and in Russia it is almost three quarters, "says the deputy director of the research institute" Development Center "of the Higher School of Economics of Valery Mironov. - Moreover, the "secret" part of the Russian state budget in 2014 was 14%, now it has become much larger. In the country there are "hybrid" types of state capitalism, in which the state has an impact on investment solutions of private companies, owning in them only minority capital.
Shortly before his dismissal in November 2020, the head of FAS Igor Artemyev assured that the "road maps" on the national plan was fulfilled not by more than 60%. For example, in the trash industry in 85% of regional competitions for the choice of local operator, there was no competition - one application claimed.
To ensure competition, the state does not weaken the control of the business, but increases it - that is the Russian paradox. The Prosecutor General of Russia Igor Krasnov said that he intended to strengthen the control over the state procurement on the audit of the Accounts Chamber. It turned out that over the past five years, the proportion of state procurement has only grown and reached 31% of GDP. That is, about a third of the money of the country rotates in the system, far according to its principles from the concept of "market". Before the New Year, the Kremlin poured oil into the fire, declaring the desire to control retail prices for basic food.
And while a new plan for the development of competition for 2021-2026 is presented, the discussion on the possible revival of the State University will sound. It is possible that he will also be responsible for competition in the country too.
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