Balgarianovinite.com Deputy Prime Minister Atanas Zafirov said on Bulgarian National Radio (BNR) on Sunday that all debate about what kind of budget the Government is proposing ended on the day the bill entered Parliament. From this point on, he said, it is the joint budget of the governing majority and the Cabinet, and must be defended as such.
He noted that the draft budget contains measures for which he cannot understand the criticism, such as increasing second-year maternity benefits.
Zafirov also pointed out that the so-called Swiss rule for pensions is being preserved and that income growth, as a key policy of the Government, continues.
“These critics should stop filling the media space with threats and talking about Greek and Romanian scenarios,” Zafirov said, adding that Bulgaria’s public debt will remain around 30% of GDP. Claims that the budget harms people’s incomes create panic and spread falsehoods at a moment when Bulgaria is on the threshold of joining the eurozone, he warned.
According to him, the root of the backlash lies in the fact that Bulgarian employers and part of society do not like the increase in the dividend tax and the social-security contribution’s ceiling. Zafirov commented that these measures primarily affect the wealthier segment of the population.
He added that the position of the trade unions is far more balanced and that they understand this is the feasible budget. “Of course it is the product of many compromises – we are different parties with different ideologies. Naturally, we all want to see more reforms in this budget, but ultimately we should be satisfied that its social benefits are significantly increased,” Zafirov said.
Continue the Change – Democratic Bulgaria’s (CC-DB) Floor Leader, Nikolay Denkov, told BNR that there will be every reason for protests – and that these protests are only beginning. According to him, taxes are being raised while the draft budget includes massive borrowing; under this plan, Bulgaria accumulates BGN 60 million in new debt every day. Denkov said some sectors receive very large increases despite already having relatively high wages, while others are harmed by the budget.
Commenting the upcoming Tuesday protest related to the draft budget before journalists later on Sunday, Denkov clarified: “I don’t know where the word ‘occupation’ came from. We have not planned in any way to occupy Parliament.” What CC-DB is calling for, he said, is for citizens to come and express their views on the budget bring discussed. The protest, he explained, will take place when the Parliamentary Budget and Finance Committee meets, because that is the final moment when proposals from the different political groups are reviewed. “This is the moment when the budget should be balanced. We used every parliamentary tool, pointed out where the deficits are, made proposals for how to balance the budget – but none of the governing parties paid attention. I hope they at least understand that citizens must be heard,” Denkov said.
The Vazrazhdane party is willing to support an occupation of Parliament, its leader Kostadin Kostadinov told reporters in Parliament when asked about his party’s position regarding the Continue the Change initiative. Deputy PM Zafirov and Opposition Clash over 2026 State Budget as Protests Loom 2025 THE NEWS FROM BULGARIA – NEWS AGENCY 2009-2025 2025-11-23 16:01:00 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
