Following is an excerpt, dedicated to the developments in Bulgaria, from the latest weekly report of the Economist Intelligence Unit. The excerpt is entitled "King makers, King breakers":

The centre-right opposition Union of Democratic Forces (UDF) has elected Nadezhda Mihailova, a popular former foreign minister, as its leader, replacing the incumbent, Ekaterina Mihailova. The change comes as the party attempts to repair the damage to its reputation caused by high-level corruption scandals. These contributed to the previous UDF government’s defeat last June in elections that were won by Simeon Saxe-Coburg, the former king and current prime minister.

At the same time, however, tensions have emerged within Mr Saxe-Coburg’s party, the National Movement for Simeon II (NMS). Five NMS MPs have quit the party to become independent deputies, and more other desertions are possible following Mr Saxe-Coburg’s effort to expel 20 NMS members who signed a letter asking for greater efforts to reduce poverty and raise living standards.

The NMS’s popularity has fallen precipitously since the election, from 52% last August to just 30% in February. This reflects popular disappointment with the government’s failure to deliver on its central campaign promise of rapid improvement. Nevertheless, the NMS and its junior coalition partner, the ethnic Turk Movement for Rights and Freedoms, still have a comfort able parliamentary majority, holding 135 of 240 seats.

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