Bulgaria's GERB Boycotts Vote on Self-Initiated No-Confidence Motion

Politics » DOMESTIC | September 25, 2013, Wednesday // 09:59
Bulgaria: Bulgaria's GERB Boycotts Vote on Self-Initiated No-Confidence Motion Former Prime Minister and GERB leader Boyko Borisov commented that GERB had sought to show that the government and BSP were hostages of Ataka and its leader Volen Siderov. Photo by BGNES

Bulgaria's Parliament will not hold a sitting on Wednesday due to the lack of a quorum, meaning that the start of debates on the no-confidence motion against the socialist-led government is postponed.

The first attempt to secure a quorum resulted in a total of 93 registered MPs, of them 64 socialist MPs and 29 MPs of the ethnic Turkish Movement for Rights and Freedoms (DPS) party.

At the second attempt to secure a quorum (121 MPs) in the plenary hall, a total of 103 MPs registered, of which 70 MPs of the Bulgarian Socialist Party and 33 MPs of DPS.

MPs of center-right party GERB (Citizens for European Development of Bulgaria), who initiated the no-confidence motion, attended the sitting but did not register for voting.

The MPs of nationalist party Ataka also refused to register.

MPs of nationalist party Ataka, who usually secure the quorum, are on a working visit to Brussels. The parliamentary group of Ataka sent an official statement to Parliament Speaker Mihal Mikov that they would not take part in Parliament's work this week.

Former Prime Minister and GERB leader Boyko Borisov commented that GERB had sought to show that the government and BSP were hostages of Ataka and its leader Volen Siderov.

He suggested that the fact that BSP and DPS were unable to organize themselves to defend the government was "absolute failure."

The next sitting of Parliament is scheduled to take place at 9 am on Thursday.

Parliament Speaker and socialist MP Mihail Mikov commented Thursday that GERB had obviously reconsidered its plans and realized that it had made a mistake. He emphasized that Parliament's rules of procedure required the debate on the no-confidence vote to take place within seven days of its submission, adding that the deadline expired on Thursday, and if GERB refused to register on Thursday too, the motion would be cancelled.

GERB initiated a no-confidence motion against the socialist-led coalition government over its failed investment planning policy. GERB MPs claimed that the newly established Investment Minstry was of no practical benefit and had only been wasting taxpayers' money on superfluous administration for its four months in existence.

BSP and DPS refuted the accusations as absurd.

The chances of the no-confidence vote succeeding are negligible because GERB and Ataka have a total of 120 MPs and in order for the motion to pass, they need the support of one more MP.

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Tags: Volen Siderov, Ataka, nationalist party, GERB, Citizens for European Development of Bulgaria, Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP), no-confidence vote, ethnic Turkish Movement for Rights and Freedoms party, DPS

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