Several Liberal MPs wrote their resignation from the Romanian Parliament and handed them to opposition National Liberal Party (PNL) leader Crin Antonescu to have them at the ready should PNL decide to withdraw from the Parliament en-masse, Antonescu said on Monday. But he said a decision has not yet been made whether USL - the opposition union of liberals and Social Democrats - would withdraw from the Legislative. Antonescu said talks will be held with their Social Democrats (PSD) and Conservatives (PC) on the issue.

Romanian prime minister Emil Boc announced before the Parliament on Monday that he dismisses Foreign minister Teodor Baconschi. He made the announcement shortly after apologizing before the joint chambers of the Parliament for communication failures of some members of the Government regarding the protests that have been taking place in Bucharest. By Monday afternoon, an announcement on the Foreign Ministry website said Baconschi was in Brussels for the Foreign Affairs Council.
UPDATE PM Emil Boc later said that he dismissed minister Baconschi because dignitaries should not be "encouraged to insult people who are rightfully discontent". For his part, Teodor Baconschi said for news station Realitatea TV that PM Boc informed him by phone about the decision and said it was a political decision as the prime minister had nothing to complain about when it came to government affairs. One possible replacement for Baconschi, according to some sources, might be Cristian Diaconescu, head of the National Union for the Progress of Romania (UNPR).

A struggle to replace the second highest ranking official in Romania took a major twist on Wednesday, when the Senate voted its speaker Mircea Geoana out of office following him being ousted from the Social Democratic Party (PSD, opposition) on Tuesday. An interim speaker was named - Senator Petru Filip of the governing Democratic Liberal Party (PDL), who will serve until a new speaker is officially elected. According to Romania's Constitution, should the President be suspended or unable to fulfill his duties, the Senate speaker takes his place. The PSD announced earlier this week it would start procedures to suspend President Traian Basescu.

Romania's opposition Social-Liberal Union, formed of Social Democrats (PSD) and Liberals (PNL), decided on Monday to launch a procedure to suspend President Traian Basescu. While leaders of the USL Union said they hoped to have the support of the Romanian people, PM Emil Boc had described a possible such move as demagogic and irresponsible. USL leaders said the official suspension request would be finished most probably within a week.

The leader of Romania's main opposition party, the Social Democrats (PSD), spoke kindly of the country's National Anti-corruption Department (DNA) in an interview with HotNews.ro. PSD leader Victor Ponta, who's party had repeatedly claimed the DNA has been acting politically at the current president Traian Basescu's order, changed the tone in the interview. He praised the DNA for starting to move against the top ranks of the "institutionalized corruption system" in the country.

The leader of Romania's main opposition party, the Social Democrats (PSD), said in an interview with HotNews.ro on Thursday that the PSD would accept any court sentence regarding former PM Adrian Nastase, who's the subject of several court cases which the PSD has so far described as politically motivated. PSD leader Victor Ponta's statement comes as Adrian Nastase broke Ponta's lines in a major internal struggle of the party.

​The leadership of the Romanian Senate was undecided on Monday afternoon as the main opposition party, the Social Democrats (PSD) called on Senate speaker Mircea Geoana to withdraw from the second top job in the Romanian state. The PSD group in the Romanian Parliament later announced it withdrew its political support for Geoana and that it proposed Titus Corlatean, PSD vicepresident and head of the Foreign Affairs Committee, to take over the seat of Senate Speaker.

A Romanian opposition deputy said he would demand a parliamentary inquiry at the Foreign Ministry to see why Romania has been lacking an ambassador to China - a world economic power which Romania is courting - for nine months, news agency Mediafax reports.

Romania's governing Democratic Liberal Party (PDL), the political group behind President Traian Basescu is to elect its new leadership in a national convention on Saturday and Sunday. Incumbent party president, PM Emil Boc, is facing Vasile Blaga and Theodor Paleologu in party presidency elections. The convention was opened with a speech held by Traian Basescu, built on several key messages showing that the party should keep its line if hoping to do well in next local and general elections.

State Secretary Nicolae Ivaschescu will ensure the interim of the Labour ministry until a new minister will be named, PM Boc announced on Wednesday after Ioan Botis announced his resignation following a scandal involving himself and his wife in an association that received 500,000 million euro EU funds from an institution under the subordination of the ministry.

Vasile Blaga is the second Democrat Liberal after PM Emil Boc who submitted on Monday his candidacy for Democratic Liberal President. He said his objective is to have the party in the government after 2012 to continue reforms started. It is the only way Romanians can have the guarantee of better living conditions, he said.

PM Emil Boc submitted his candidacy for a new mandate as head of the Democratic Liberal Party. His main counter candidate is Vasile Blaga and Teodor Paleologu. PM Emil Boc made his announcement on the steps of the party HQ where “I announced all my victories”.

Radu Mazare, influential leader of the Social Democratic Party (PSD, opposition) branch in Constanta county, claimed on Thursday that President Traian Basescu was an informer of the Ceausescu-era political police, the Securitate, Romanian news agency Mediafax reports. Mazare statement comes as the Supreme Court rejected an appeal of Dan Voiculescu, leader of the Conservative Party (PC, allied with PSD), against a previous verdict that Voiculescu collaborated with the Securitate.

The Romanian opposition Social Liberal Union (USL), comprised of Social Democrats and Liberals, would support independent candidate Sorin Oprescu - the current Bucharest Mayor - should he prove to be the solution for an opposition victory in Bucharest local elections, Social Democratic leader Victor Ponta said in an interview with news agency Agerpres on Wednesday. For his part, Oprescu said he was honored by the USL support but that he remained an independent.

The Emil Boc Government assumed responsibility for a series of changes to the Labor Code before the Romanian Parliament on Tuesday, with the prime minister arguing the new legislation was aimed at making Romania attractive to investors and allow employers to provide jobs more easily. "It's a code for a competitive Romania" he said. Opposition parties were due to submit a censure motion today in order to discuss it in mid-March.
UPDATE The opposition submitted the censure motion against the Boc Government. The motion will be debated March 16.

The Romanian Government was due to assume responsibility before Parliament over a series of changes to the Labor Code during a joint session of the two houses on Tuesday. The opposition has announced that once the government assumes responsibility it will submit a censure motion against it.

Tax evasion has become a vulnerability of the national security as over 30% of the resources bound for the state are subject of tax evasion or suspicions of tax evasion, Romanian President Traian Basescu said at an event on Monday. And he said the Finance Ministry will soon start work on the idea of uniting the Financial Guard and the Customs Office within fiscal authority ANAF.

The Romanian High Court of Justice postponed until March 10 on Thursday a verdict for the case in which influential businessman-politician Dan Voiculescu challenged a previous court decision that he collaborated with the Ceausescu-era political police, the Securitate, news agency Agerpres reports.

The General Secretariat of the Romanian Government (SGG) must be restructured as it has too many functions and a more consolidated structure should be considered, shows a confidential report of the World Bank, obtained by HotNews.ro. According to the document, the number of agencies which report directly to the prime minister or the SGG is too high and should be cut.

The political groups supporting the governing coalition signed on Wednesday a protocol of partnership between the Democratic Liberals (PDL), Hungarian Democrats (UDMR), the National Union for the Progress of Romania and the group of national minorities other than Hungarians.