The mediator appreciated the idea of ​​creating stores with fixed prices

The idea of ​​creating retail chains with fixed prices in Russia is not new; it was worked out in Soviet times. Now this could become a good economic lever, which will contribute to helping the low-income segments of the population, pensioners and those with many children. This was stated to Izvestia by a lawyer, mediator Yuri Kapshtyk on Thursday, March 24.

Earlier in the day, Tatarstan’s commissioner for children’s rights and founder of the National Parents’ Committee, Irina Volynets, called for the creation of state retail chains in Russia with fixed prices for essential goods. As reported RTthe Ombudsman sent a corresponding appeal to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the Ministry of Agriculture and addressed to the First Deputy Prime Minister Andrei Belousov.

Kapshtyk said that, for example, in the USSR, a similar situation was with salons for newlyweds. When applying to the registry office, the couple received a subscription with which they could buy clothes for the wedding ceremony.

The mediator noted that in any case, a store with fixed prices will determine them based on the cost of goods, delivery, the need to pay salaries to employees, and the cost of maintaining outlets. According to him, the creation of such a network will require time, performers, retail space.

“Fixed prices are a good regulator, but implementation will be difficult, since half of the Russian population is elderly citizens, children, parents with many children,” the lawyer said.

Kapshtyk did not rule out that when creating such points of sale, there may be cases of abuse by “enterprising” citizens who will try to obtain the rights to purchase in such stores.

According to him, there is no threat of selling expired goods in such networks, since Rospotrebnadzor and other government agencies are now monitoring this.

Svetlana Bessarab, a member of the State Duma Committee on Labour, Social Policy and Veterans Affairs, told Izvestia that setting a marginal markup is the best option to control price increases. She noted that many countries did this, including during the pandemic, when, for example, a markup of no more than 20-25% was set on the cost for all subsequent suppliers.

According to Bessarab, the organization of state trade networks is a “utopia”, since the period of planned economic management in the Soviet Union has already passed. She stressed that this could only lead to shortages.

On March 21, Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin said that it is necessary to ensure that Russians can buy familiar goods, despite the sanctions.

On the same day, Deputy Prime Minister of Russia Victoria Abramchenko said that the country has enough stocks of sugar and buckwheat to meet domestic demand.

Western countries began to impose anti-Russian sanctions after Moscow launched a special operation on February 24 to protect the civilian population of Donbass. As the press secretary of the head of state Dmitry Peskov clarified, the operation has two goals – the demilitarization and denazification of Ukraine.

In mid-February, due to the aggravation of the situation in the Donbass as a result of shelling by the Ukrainian military, the Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics asked for recognition of their independence and announced the evacuation of the civilian population to Russia. On February 21, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed decrees recognizing the independence of the DPR and LPR, as well as agreements that, among other things, provide for the provision of military assistance to each other.

For more up-to-date videos and details about the situation in Donbass, watch the Izvestia TV channel.