site.btaUPDATED Finance Minister: Maintaining Fiscal Stability, Sustainable Finances Is Key Priority for Caretaker Government

The caretaker Government has consistently emphasized that, in addition to organizing free and fair elections, one of its key priorities is maintaining fiscal stability and sustainable public finances, caretaker Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Lyudmila Petkova told a news briefing at the Council of Ministers on Monday.

One of the solutions is to submit to the National Assembly a bill which would regulate revenue collection and expenditures for 2025 until the adoption of Bulgaria's 2025 State Budget Bill, the 2025 Public Social Insurance Budget Bill, and the 2025 National Health Insurance Fund Budget Bill, the Minister explained.

According to Petkova, the caretaker Government is committed to ensuring that the country does not descend into chaos and that a legal framework and order are maintained. In this context, the draft law has been prepared and will be submitted to the National Assembly later on Monday.

Experts and economists have suggested that an extension bill be prepared - a practice known from previous years. The extension bill implements the provisions of the budget acts from the previous year and is not envisaged either in the Constitution or in the Public Finance Act, Petkova explained. She added that the extension bill has always been a crisis measure. 

The Finance Ministry has discussed the form of the bill to be introduced in the National Assembly. According to Petkova, it cannot be an extension bill, as the structure of the 2024 State Budget differs from previous years, including in terms of capital expenditures and other expenditures. She also explained that laws on pay rises in higher education, defence, and security had been adopted, and an extension bill would override them.

Petkova emphasized that the proposed draft budget regulates all amounts, indicators, bases, and procedures included in the 2024 State Budget Act. Pay rises in the Finance Ministry, higher education and defence will be effective January 1, 2025. The Government approved a minimum wage of BGN 1,077 for 2025. However, civil servants earning the minimum wage will still be paid BGN 933 - the amount specified in the 2024 State Budget Act, said Petkova.

The caretaker Government has not proposed any new policies in the 2025 budget and it has been drawn up with a view to existing policies and current legislation. The National Assembly may adopt different policies from those currently in place, noted the Finance Minister.