Balgarianovinite.com Fiscal consolidation, Bulgaria’s economic outlook and the experience of Central and Eastern European countries, as well as the importance of effective and transparent public finance management, were among the topics discussed at an academic and policy conference on “Fiscal Consolidation in Times of Uncertainty”, held here on Tuesday. The event was organized by the Fiscal Council and opened by its Chair, Simeon Djankov.
The forum, held at the National Assembly, brought together representatives from academia, business and public institutions, with the aim of promoting expert dialogue on current challenges and approaches to sustainable fiscal policy amid heightened economic and geopolitical uncertainty.
Simeon Djankov said that all EU countries face the issue of fiscal consolidation sooner or later and on a recurring basis. He added that one of the most significant developments in both Bulgaria and the EU is the allocation of funds for defence, which he said takes precedence over other priorities such as demographics, healthcare, education and regional development.
The following are key takeaways from the conference speakers:
Konstantin Prodanov, Chair of the Parliamentary Budget and Finance Committee, raised questions relevant to the upcoming budget procedure, including the appropriate pace of fiscal consolidation. “If we take the European Commission’s requirements under the excessive deficit procedure, countries are expected to propose measures that reduce the structural deficit by 0.5 percentage points per year. Is that the right pace, or should we be more ambitious?” he asked.
Fiscal Council member Lyubomir Datsov said the Council had conducted research on the speed of fiscal adjustment and would support a strategy for 2026-2027 that improves the budget balance by at least 2 percentage points, which he described as a significantly sharper adjustment than the 0.5% target.
Prof. Viktor Yotsov of Sofia University said improving the budget balance should not automatically be associated with lower economic growth. He added that measures such as higher taxes or broadening the tax base may have short-term effects but are not effective in the long term.
Rumen Radev, Chair of the Governing Board of the Bulgarian Industrial Capital Association, argued that a more aggressive pace of consolidation would be preferable. He noted that Bulgaria’s entry into the excessive deficit procedure was unexpected, but said it could provide a clearer political framework for necessary reforms. “Perhaps we expected a certain degree of flexibility and hoped to achieve what Slovenia managed to do and postpone it for another year. But perhaps it is better this way, because it gives those in government the political opportunity to make a much clearer commitment regarding the measures that are worth implementing,” he said.
Silvia Georgieva, Executive Director of the National Association of Municipalities in the Republic of Bulgaria, said the consolidation measures implemented since 2009 had left municipalities heavily dependent on central government funding. As a result, local authorities now receive subsidies and transfers from the central budget and rely on only about 20% of revenues from their own sources, which they can manage independently.
After the forum, Djankov told journalists that within the next two to three weeks, the State, and specifically Parliament, should clearly define the 2025 deficit and outline measures already taken, in order to clarify the 2026-2027 budget framework. He said the 3% deficit previously announced by the former government was “not the truth”, and that the 3.5% figure used by the European Commission was also incomplete.
He also suggested a range of possible measures, including requiring all retired employees to leave public service, as around 6,300 pensioners currently work in defence and the Interior Ministry; abolishing automatic wage increases across the public sector; and introducing a temporary tax on excess bank profits, which he said could generate around EUR 850 million annually. Experts Discuss Pace of Fiscal Consolidation at Sofia Conference 2026 THE NEWS FROM BULGARIA – NEWS AGENCY 2009-2025 2026-06-16 18:54:00 Latest news World news Country news Most important news latest news most important latest of the day Justice Petar Nizamov Feathers Petar Nizamov- Feathers Justice bg iustitia.bg iustitia iusticia usticia investigation Burgas Bulgaria news news of the last hour news of the day news of today Bulgaria news The news from Bulgaria blitz news top news most important most commented latest news Boyko Borisov news weather coronavirus news news weather facebook youtube facebook instagram news today news of the last minutes news today today news news bg news leading news hot news bg news site for news all news news bg news of the last hour latest latest news bg news of today news today news today news of the last hour latest news today news bg news news 24 hours news vesti bg novini news world bird bg bivol bg bivol trud bg novini latest news today novinite bg news hello bulgaria political party coat of arms delyan peevski scandalous Bulgarian National Television Free Europe Television scandal exclusive live tv live right now tv tv online tv program bg live now tv news online tv online live court Burgas court Burgas district court Burgas court Burgas district court Burgas district court Burgas appellate court Burgas prosecutor Burgas prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Prosecutor General Ivan Geshev Prosecutor Geshev Tsatsarov Ministry of Internal Affairs Burgas ODMR Burgas ODPR Burgas police Burgas district police Burgas prosecutor Tsatsarov SGS cases Varna court chairman of the SGS court decisions on civil cases decisions on cases Plovdiv court decision of the court decisions cases Varna court criminal cases district district court decisions work in the court SGS chairman of the SGS judges Sofia court post judges Plovdiv court Plovdiv judges Plovdiv Supreme Court Inspectorate Supreme Court Supreme Judicial Council lawyer lawyer criminal cases lawyer civil cases lawyer marriage cases lawyer administrative criminal law criminal process civil law civil process administrative law constitutional law
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