site.btaUPDATED Parliament Obliges Government to Provide Assistance to Wildfire Victims

With 201-0 votes in favour, Parliament on Friday unanimously resolved to oblige the government to take the necessary actions and provide funds from the budget to assist the victims of wildfires.

The decision also stipulates that the Council of Ministers must update the National Assembly on a weekly basis of the actions taken. 

The lawmakers also obliged the government to take the necessary actions to purchase aerial firefighting equipment for the needs of the Interior Ministry.   

The Council of Ministers should submit to the National Assembly a report on the actions taken to use the funds allocated in February 2024 under the Operational Programme for Environment to the amount of BGN 170 million for the purchase of fire-fighting equipment for prevention of forest fires.

Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Lyudmila Petkova told MPs that the Finance Ministry is currently elaborating a procedure how the funds will be allocated and will instruct the local authorities. The idea is that local authorities will submit assistance applications weekly to the Finance Ministry.

MP Martin Dimitrov of Continue the Change-Democratic Bulgaria (CC-DB) said that the National Assembly and the Finance Ministry have made a commitment to pay compensation to everyone that has been affected. Dimitrov recalled that under the Denkov cabinet BGN 170 million have been allocated for the purchase of new firefighting equipment, and Parliament should see these procedures through so that modern equipment is provided, Dimitrov further noted.

MP Ivan Ivanov of BSP for Bulgaria urged the Council of Ministers and the Finance Ministry to promptly budget funds for the purchase of such equipment.

“The approach now is good - there is consensus in the political forces in this direction,” Ivanov further said.

“We have rallied around the interest of the people,” independent MP Kaloyan Metodiev said.