site.btaSocialist Party Mandates Its Parliamentary Group to Sign Governance Agreement, Nominates Ministers

Meeting on Sunday, the National Council of the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP) approved a proposal by the party's Executive Bureau to mandate the BSP-United Left parliamentary group to sign an agreement on the governance of Bulgaria with GERB-UDF and There Is Such a People (TISP), with an aim to set up a nationally responsible government. The BSP National Council assessed positively the leftist policies which the Socialists' contact group pushed into the draft of the agreement, the BSP press office reported. The vote on the decision was 102-13, with seven abstentions.

Meanwhile, the parliamentary group of Democracy, Rights and Freedoms (DRF) expressed its readiness to support a regular government formed by GERB-UDF, BSP-United Left and TISP following a meeting of the four entities at the National Assembly.

The BSP press office commented that the agreement sets priority on the people's quality of life, with a focus on healthcare, education and the development of the labour market. The agreement also includes provisions for high-quality educational, social and health services for children and families, fighting child poverty, addressing social inequalities and effectively supporting vulnerable groups. The parties to the agreement undertake to protect the welfare state, ensure greater social justice, including by reviewing the public revenue system, and take steps towards financial decentralization.

The BSP National Council also mandated the BSP-United Left parliamentary group to support a Council of Ministers structure and lineup. It nominated BSP-United Left Coalition leader Atanas Zafirov for deputy prime minister in the future regular government, BSP-United Left deputy floor leader Ivan Ivanov for minister of regional development and public works, the group's co-floor leader Borislav Gutsanov for minister of labour and social policy, BSP Plovdiv regional chapter chairman Manol Genov for minister of environment and water, and BSP Sofia City chapter deputy chairman Ivan Peshev for minister of youth and sport.