The Monitoring Group on Democracy, the Rule of Law and Fundamental Rights of the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs in the European Parliament will discuss the situation in Bulgaria for the second time. The subcommittee meeting will be virtual, the BNR said.

After it was initially announced yesterday that Justice Minister Desislava Ahladova would be heard at the meeting, it was subsequently revealed that her deputy Evgeni Stoyanov would speak instead. The participation of the Ombudsman Diana Kovacheva was also cancelled.

Deputy Chief Prosecutors from the Supreme Prosecutor's Office of Cassation Daniela Masheva and Krasimira Filipova, as well as representatives of the European and Venice Commissions, will also participate. Deputy Prime Minister for judicial reform Ekaterina Zaharieva, who attended the hearing in August, will not participate in the meeting this time. It will take place behind closed doors.

The meeting was expected to take place in mid-December, but was postponed for technical reasons. At the time, MEP from the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats Elena Yoncheva announced that the group was not happy with the answers by the Bulgarian authorities to the additional written questions, which were sent to them after their hearing in August.