United Russia congress approves programme for next ten years

ST. PETERSBURG, November 22 (Itar-Tass) - A congress of the United
Russia party in St. Petersburg on Saturday approved a new programme for
the next ten years.
"This is the first policy document of the party which alongside the
tasks of improving the quality of life and economic development projects
will clearly state our ideology - Russian conservatism," State Duma
speaker Gryzlov said.
"This is an ideology of stability and development, constant creative
renovation of society without stagnation and revolutions," said Gryzlov,
who is the chairman of the party Supreme Council.
He explained that the programme was based on the priorities contained
in the Strategy-2020, the Putin Plan, President Dmitry Medvedev's
executive article "Onward, Russia!" and his Address to the Federal
Assembly.
According to Gryzlov, "Russian conservatism is open conservatism",
that is "conservatism that is prepared for discussion, both inside the
party and with opponents", "conservatism that is prepared to accept new
ideas and therefore capable of modernising the country".
He believes that party's ideology can be state in very simple terms:
"Creating the new and preserving the best".
The main purpose of the programme is to improve the quality of life in
Russia. Economic development can proceed only alongside social
development, and this is why social issues are in the focus of anti-crisis
measures, Gryzlov said.
He emphasized the role of Medvedev's speech for the program of party
moves. "A constructive speech of President Dmitry Medvedev contained a lot
of tasks which we will have to solve," and "it is particularly important
that it is our party that the president pins hopes on," he said.
At the congress, Medvedev urged the party for changes and also for
resetting public relations in he country. He is convinced that they must
be rebuilt in favour of talented and modern people who can move the
society forward. The president warned that "United Russia will be able to
maintain dominating positions in the political system on one condition -
if it manages to not only stabilize the situation in the country, but also
update the economy".
He stressed that "the Russian citizens have a right to expect from
United Russia not only assistance in modernisation, not just party or
parliamentary control over what is going on," but said "the citizens have
a right to demand concrete results".
Gryzlov also marked a substantial report of the party leader, Prime
Minister Vladimir Putin, which had touched upon "practically all aspects
of the country's development - social, economic and political spheres".
Putin's report contained "a lot of concrete proposals and tasks facing
members of the United Russia Party," he said.
The congress also elected to the Supreme Council St. Petersburg
Governor Valentina Matviyenko, Russian Union of Industrialists and
Entrepreneurs President Alexander Shokhin, film director Fyodor
Bondarchuk, and saxophonist Igor Butman.
Of the 64 members elected at the congress, only four are new. All the
others were re-elected. The Council consists of 70 members, but six
spots were left vacant. The Supreme Council is the governing body of
United Russia. It is headed by Boris Gryzlov. Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov
and Tatar President Mintimer Shaimiyev are co-chairmen.
The Supreme Council consists of regional governors, State Duma and
Federation Council members, and senior federal government officials.
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