site.btaParliamentary Political Forces Express Differing Positions about 2019 State Budget

104 POLITICS-ECONOMY-2019 BUDGET-POSITIONS

Parliamentary Political Forces Express
Differing Positions about
2019 State Budget


Sofia, November 7 (BTA) - During the debates preceding the passage of the 2019 State Budget Bill on first reading on Wednesday evening the parliamentary political forces expressed differing opinions about the budged proposed by the government of the ruling coalition of GERB and the United Patriots.

Opposition Bulgarian Socialist Party

Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP) leader Kornelia Ninova said that her party does not support the 2019 budget because it is "a budget of economic stagnation, of increased taxes for poor people, of deadlock and hopelessness".

Citing a report of Finance Minister Vladislav Goranov, which said that the 2019 budget is big, Socialist MP Roumen Gechev noted that "The Titanic was big but sank, so you'd better put your life vests on and swim to early elections".

Opposition Movement for Rights and Freedoms

Movement for Rights and Freedoms (MRF) deputy floor leader Yordan Tsonev said that his party does not support the budged. Tsonev listed a number of arguments explaining MRF's position, among them that the budget does not support growth and has an unrealistic inflation projection. According to Tsonev, the economic growth reported over the past couple of years is not due to government policies but to increased consumption which in turn is driven by money transfers of Bulgarians working abroad and spending for staple goods whose prices have grown. The MP argued that spending will increase, which will push up inflation, while growth will slow down. Tsonev went on to say that the budged revenue figure is increased with "GERB's signature move" of increasing thresholds, excise duties and an endless number of fees, which are borne out by the business and the people. The MP said that the budget continues to be wrongly planned, by providing for high capital expenditure which fails to be utilized and is then spent by means of Council of Ministers decrees. "This practice must end," Tsonev said.

United Patriots coalition

United Patriots deputy floor leader Iskren Vesselinov said that the coalition supports the budget because "it provides the most for the most important thing - the growth of the incomes of the Bulgarian people". Vesselinov argued that increasing people's incomes is one of the most powerful levers to tackle the demographic crisis. LY/ZH//