site.btaBulgaria is One of Top European Countries in Fight against Smuggling, Prime Minister Says

Sofia, September 26 (BTA) - Bulgaria is one of the top countries in Europe in terms of the fight against smuggling, which is indicative of how the country is dealing with corruption in general, Prime Minister Boyko Borissov said on Tuesday. Borissov spoke to journalists after the release of a report on illegal cigarettes earlier in the day.

The report, sponsored by large tobacco producers, says that contraband cigarettes accounted for 7 per cent of the Bulgarian cigarette market in the second quarter of 2017, putting the country in eighth place in the EU.

Borissov said: "The earnings from smuggling contaminate the whole system, because to move a batch of contraband goods you need help from a border officer, a customs officer, a tax officer, protection at the local level - and all this implies a huge amount of money."

The Prime Minister predicted that smuggling in cigarettes, alcohol and fuel will continue to shrink, because the curbing of contraband is beneficial for the state. He urged the Interior Minister and the ministry's Chief Secretary to investigate why the market share of contraband cigarettes in 11 towns is over the national average of 7 per cent and to address the problem within a month.

Borissov noted that public proceeds collected by the two revenue agencies were 150-200 million leva lower under the caretaker government (January-May 2017).

Interior Minister Valentin Radev said that between January and August 2017 his department impounded 21 million illegal cigarettes, which implies a decrease by 56 per cent, as well as 35 tonnes of fine-cut tobacco. Seizures of illegal cigarettes by the authorities over that period prevented more than 3 million leva in losses, and seizures of fine-cut tobacco prevented more than 5 million leva in detriment. The largest amount of contraband cigarettes was impounded in the Plovdiv area in the south of the country.

According to Finance Minister Vladislav Goranov, the results of the fight against smuggling show that Bulgaria is able to protect not only its borders but also its economic interests.

Deputy Prosecutor General Borislav Sarafov pointed to the good inter-agency work against smuggling, which he said would have been impossible without "the Prime Minister's unifying role." Sarafov sees "a clear and irreversible trend" of reducing the market share of illegal cigarettes.