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Sofia, February 10 (BTA)


THE HOME SCENE


On Wednesday Parliament approved on first reading the budgets of the National Health Insurance Fund and of the Public Social Insurance for 2022. On Thursday MPs will vote in principle the State Budget Bill.

Telegraph runs an interview with Lyubomir Datsov, member of the Fiscal Council with the Bulgarian Parliament, an independent body, which oversees the implementation of the budget. Datsov argues that the 2022 budget will promote inflation and households and businesses will cut down on their consumption. He also said that the reduced VAT rates for some industries should be reversed as they are not working and have shed light on some deficiencies. The reduced VAT rate has no effect on the budget which means that the respective industries do not contribute anything.

Telegraph frontpages that butter in Bulgaria is more expensive compared with five other EU countries. Telegraph has compared the prices of ten staple foods in several regional centres in Bulgaria with the prices in five EU countries. The list includes bread, oil, butter, sugar, flour, chicken, pork, cheese, tomatoes, cucumbers and potatoes. A 250 gr-packet of butter in Bulgaria costs between 5 and 8 leva, while in Austria, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, and Belgium it is around 2 euro. The prices of foods in Germany have increased by 25 per cent since May 2020. In Bulgaria food inflation in January was 17 per cent year-on-year. Cooking oil has appreciated considerably and it costs between 3.70 leva and 4.50 leva. (1.4-2.25 euro) compared with Italy where it costs 1.50 euro per litre.

The Economy Ministry will show on an electronic display board  on its building the wholesale prices of staple foods. Meeting with officials from the State Commission for Commodity Exchanges and Wholesale Markets. Economy Minister Kornelia Ninova said that this is done to inform people about the real prices on the market.

Monitor writes that in 2021 the number of small deposits (up to 5,000 leva) decreased by 18  per cent, (302,000) while the number of large deposits went up. As few as 20 per cent of Bulgarians manage to save larger sums. According to central bank data at the end of December 2020 the deposits of households and non-financial enterprises numbered 9,368,163. Nine months later they were 9, 117,792.

Duma writes that the Regional Development Ministry is working to set up a Regional Development Fund which will have a budget of 1 billion leva to cover the repairs of municipal roads. The idea was discussed during the coalition talks ahead of the formation of the cabinet. It is not clear when municipalities will access the money because the fund allocation is not planned in the 2022 State Budget. Mayors will be able to implement more comprehensive projects and projects in less developed regions such as Strandzha, Northwestern Bulgaria and the Rhodope Mountains will be favoured. The Association of Municipalities in Bulgaria has asked for 300 million leva for the repairs of municipal roads. Because of the appreciation of the price of construction materials municipal projects worth 2.2 billion leva are at risk.

POLITICS

On Wednesday Prime Minister Kiril Petkov visited the offices of the Supreme Cassation Prosecution Office to be questioned about people who are allegedly at the root of corruption in Bulgaria and who he named during a meeting with Prosecutor General Ivan Geshev on February 4. Petkov took a file of information which is available on the Internet. In a front-page story Monitor asks who is pressuring who in the latest chapter of the war between the prosecution service on the one hand and the Prime Minister, the President and the Cabinet on the other. A day ago, the prosecution accused the Prime Minister of indirect pressure by asking why no charges have been pressed against the former CEO of Bulgargaz but instead he has been interviewed as a witness. For his part President Rumen Radev said that Petkov's questioning is a form of "institutional blackmail".

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Trud quotes former Deputy Prime Minister and current MP Tomislav Donchev as saying that Bulgaria is falling behind by 13 billion leva. Businesses and the local authorities will be able to tap money under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan in 2023 at the earliest, because the  government of Kiril Petkov keeps editing the document. Donchev's forecast has been confirmed by economic and financial experts. Under the most optimistic scenario Bulgaria will receive the money in May and beneficiaries will be able to access it in 2023. Business representatives have warned about another adverse effect. Given that all other EU countries are using the money under their plans this may bring about a gap between Bulgaria and the other EU members. Brussels said that the latest draft was sent on October 15 and there is no newer draft despite the assurances of Prime Minister Kiril Petkov. In December Brussels returned the plan with 207 objections. The European Commission was mostly dissatisfied with the measures in the energy sector.

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Trud writes that the Counter-corruption and Unlawfully Acquired Assets Forfeiture Commission refused to coordinate a government sponsored bill for the closure of specialized courts and prosecution. The revisions to the Judicial System Act have been tabled by Justice Minister Nadezhda Yordanova. The Commission argues that the revisions are not based on an objective and clear analysis about the efficiency of specialized justice and the closure runs against the government's priorities to fight corruption.

LIFESTYLE

24 Chasa frontpages that at the height of a relatively successful tourist season there are reports that owners of hotels in the ski resorts are closing down because they are unable to pay their electricity bills. The largest hotel in the village of Stoykite, Perelik Palace, near Pamporovo has closed down because the owners said that they will lose 800,000 leva if it stays open. Another five hotels in nearby Chepelare have closed down. The bills are at least three times higher compared with before. In Borovets and Bansko there are no closed hotels. According to Malin Bistrin, chair of the Tourist Business Union in Bansko, electricity accounts for 60 per cent of the expenses of the accommodation establishments and foods have appreciated too, but hotel owners are reluctant to increase prices. Bistrin urged for support from the state not just for the tourist industry but for all businesses.

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24 Chasa writes that Sofia is relaxing COVID restrictions due to a drop in infections based on a 14-day period. As of Monday all students in Sofia will return to in-person classes. As of Wednesday discos and night bars were allowed to stay open past 10 pm, although many boycotted the restrictions before. For now a requirement to work at 50 per cent of their capacity stays in place. However the country is still in the red zone and no significant drop in infections is forecast.

BTA