Transcript of the beginning of the meeting:

Vladimir Putin: Good afternoon, Mr Volkov.

To begin with, the economy is picking up, and figures have improved this year, but you're still facing quite a few problems.

Alexander Volkov: That's true.

Vladimir Putin: Salaries have sunk somewhat.

Alexander Volkov: The average salary has grown by 5.5% in the past four months...

Vladimir Putin: Yes, it has, but this is still lower than in better years, for example, 2008.

Nevertheless, the labour market is likely to return to the pre-recession level soon.

Alexander Volkov: The number of unemployed people has decreased by 6,000 in these four months.

Vladimir Putin: Yes, but I repeat that there are still a lot of problems. Let's discuss them now.

Alexander Volkov: First of all, I'd like to thank you, Mr Prime Minister, for your help: After our meeting in April, the situation at IzhAvto, our most problematic company, began to improve. Following your directive, the government of Udmurtia and the Ministry of Industry and Trade are drafting a government resolution to create favourable conditions for international companies partnering with IzhAvto.

Vladimir Putin: When are you planning to begin production?

Alexander Volkov: We could begin in July. We'll be able to do it no sooner than a month from the release of the resolution. We'll try our best to prepare the draft as soon as possible. We are concentrating on this issue now.

Vladimir Putin: Good.

Alexander Volkov: Second, thanks to the anti-recessionary measures that the federal government put into place, the situation has stabilised and even improved in the past four months. The amount of shipped industrial products grew by 11.2%, and railway freight traffic has increased by a third.

Construction is also on the rise: We commissioned 17.5% more construction projects in housing because of the support programme for young families. This year, 500 mortgages have been issued to young families, which was made possible thanks to the support in our negotiations with Sberbank.

The federal government's decision has also facilitated a programme that provides housing for veterans. We've already provided housing for those who registered for it before 2005, and we are addressing the problems of the remaining veterans, who continue to register even now. The government has allocated over 600 million roubles for this purpose. Each veteran is eligible for 1,020,000 roubles, so we're ready to provide at least 600 veterans with new housing. The Ministry of Regional Development has assured us that they will allot all the necessary funds if more people are put on the waiting list.

Vladimir Putin: Yes, I'm aware of this decision. A lot of veterans are registering for housing, but we'll see our decision through regardless.

Alexander Volkov: We consider every application to determine whether a veteran qualifies. And we are making progress.

In addition, we continue our work on social security, including in education and healthcare.

Positive demographic trends persist, and have naturally increased. As of May 20, the birth rate was 214 higher than in the same period last year. On the one hand, the situation is still very challenging because of the negative effects of the recession. On the other hand, young people are optimistic about the future because of social security programmes and the government's support. More families have been formed, and more children have been born. Last year this rate grew by 900 people.

Vladimir Putin: More kindergartens are needed.

Alexander Volkov: In the past three years, enough preschools have been opened in Izhevsk to accommodate 2,500 children. We have secured places in kindergartens for 78% of children; this is the sixth best result in Russia. This year we continue to build kindergartens, but the main thing is that we were able to provide for 2,500 children through reclaiming the kindergarten facilities that had been rented to companies...

Vladimir Putin: They were repurposed.

Alexander Volkov: Yes. We renovate these buildings, and we will embark on the construction of new kindergartens in Izhevsk this year.

Vladimir Putin: Good.