PROGRAM OF GOVERNMENT 2017-2020 Responsible government and control of government The package of reforms necessary for EU and NATO can be accomplished only in terms of responsible, transparent and accountable government, restraining from abuse of state resources for personal or party needs. For this purpose in the first six months, the Government of Republic of Macedonia will adopt a Strategy for good governance which will ensure increased transparency of all state institutions, obligatory consultations with citizens, business associations and civil society organizations and strengthened control of the Assembly. We will pay particular attention to full transparency of public spending. Dedicated work should help Macedonia move up the Open Budget Index and increase its budget transparency from 35 to 65. In order to increase transparency, the Government of Republic of Macedonia will fully implement the concept of open government according to the Open Government Partnership. Therefore, the Government will: 20 ∎ propose legislative changes to halve the legal deadline for responding to requests for access to public information from 30 to 15 days; ∎ introduce the principle of so-called „Active transparency“ for institutions, which means disclosure (even when not required or requested) their programs (and draft programs), strategies, opinions and studies, data of organization and operating costs, decisions, acts and measures that affect the life and work of citizens and companies; ∎ provide process of guaranteed consultation with civil society organizations, chambers of commerce, trade unions and other stakeholders in the areas of work of government, when making new laws and changes to existing laws; ∎ increase by 10% annually the number of institutions which follow the recommendations for Open Data Approach; ∎ conduct a population census according to international criteria and standards. The data will provide state institutions, academic world and the civil sector with real analysis and creation of real policies in every sphere; ∎ propose to Parliament formation of a „Fiscal Council“ as an independent body, composed of prominent experts in finance or economics, whose mission will be to assess the credibility of fiscal policy an ensure its transparency and predictability; ∎ annually renew the three-year fiscal strategy (under the principle of rollover) and publish it at the beginning of the year, after the priorities of the Government for the next fiscal year have been established. This strategy will be discussed and voted in the Parliament of Republic of Macedonia, to encourage debate on fiscal and budgetary aggregates, and represent the basis of expectations by economic agents. ∎ public debt will be published fully and regularly without exceptions and political calculations. We will floor amendments to the Criminal Code in the Assembly according to which public debt concealment will constitute a crime;