site.btaOpposition Socialists Adopt Law-Making Programme for Present Political Season

117 POLITICS - SOCIALIST PARTY - LAW-MAKING PROGRAMME

Opposition Socialists Adopt
Law-Making Programme
for Present Political Season


Blagoevgrad, Southwestern Bulgaria, September 11 (BTA) - The BSP for Bulgaria Parliamentary Group has adopted its law-making programme for the present political season, opposition Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP) leader Kornelia Ninova told a news briefing in the Village of Banya near Razlog.

Even this week, the Socialists will lay before Parliament a bill against double standards in foods (drafted together with the National Union of Agricultural Cooperatives), a bill on Bulgarian products and retail chains (drafted together with the Made in Bulgaria Union), a State-Owned Enterprises Bill, a bill on compensation of Thracian Bulgarians and motions concerning domestic violence.

Ninova recalled that 20 BSP MPs will be in Parliament "to stand up for our motions and positions and to take a stand on all bills submitted." She specified that at crucial points in the work of the legislature, such as the vote on the presidential veto on the Administrative Procedure Code, the vote on the new Cabinet members, the debate on the budget and the BSP motions, as well as the Roads Act, the Parliamentary Group will be back to the debating chamber.

"We will be in Parliament and will vote in favour of the three ministers' resignations, but this will not change the system, will not change the policy," the BSP leader said, replying to a question. She was referring to the resignations of Nikolai Nankov as Minister of Regional Development and Public Works, Valentin Radev as Minister of Interior and Ivaylo Moskovski as Minister of Transport, Information Technology and Communications, tendered on August 31 in the wake of a bus crash near Svoge (Northwestern Bulgaria) on August 25, in which 17 people were killed and another 20 were injured.

The BSP leader specified that the 20 Socialist MPs will not be in Parliament to ensure the quorum. "The quorum is 121 votes, and the powerholders have 161 at their disposal," she argued.

On September 4, as the National Assembly reconvened after its summer recess, Ninova said that in a bid to catalyze a conversation on "changing the system" that the Bulgarian people needs to start, her 79-member parliamentary group will leave 20 legislators in the debating chamber and send the rest among the people to hear out what they have to say. "Indeed, without an accord on a national cause and a doctrine, and a decision to end this transition, nothing will change," she said. LI/LG
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