Bulgarian Parliament Takes Key Step Toward Euro Adoption with Overwhelming Support
The Bulgarian Parliament has passed at first reading a bill amending the Payment Services and Payment Systems Act
Bulgarian lawmakers have gathered to vote on the resignation of the government led by Prime Minister Boyko Borisov.
On Sunday, Borisov announced he would step down over the results of the presidential election. He deposited the resignation a day later.
"Two years ago the state was in a terrible condition. Either we had to do election after election or [make a coalition government]," Borisov has said before the vote in Parliament.
The outgoing Prime Minister made it clear he had believed the government wouldn't even last that long.
He thanked government partners for withstanding for more than two years considering differences among and within parties involved in or backing the government and external pressure factors such as the migrant crisis.
But "the vote on Sunday showed people want a change, something new, whatever people voted for."
Borisov argued the political situation had changed, with a "new party" having defeated his, and that made a snap election necessary.
He denied being offended by the outcome of the presidential election said he was stepping down to heed "the people's will", even though some of his political opponents had accused him of being a "dictator" and "a sultan." In Borisov's words, voters had preferred the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP)'s way of proposing a president than that of his GERB party.
Borisov congratulated Rumen Radev on winning the presidential election, dubbing the vote entirely "fair".
"Looking at the meeting between [incumbent Rosen] Plevneliev and Radev, seeing their smiles, I felt calm," he said, elaborating their conversation gave him the sense of continuity.
In a U-turn, he also praised the three-question referendum initiated by a popular TV show and recommended that the voting system be changed.
The nationalist Patriotic Front (PF) coalition, which backs the minority cabinet but has no ministers in it, condemned the resignation and called on lawmakers to vote against and secure a year more in office to help Bulgaria withstand global challenges.
Brussels has unofficially warned Bulgaria’s Finance Minister Temenuzhka Petkova that the country’s euro adoption process could be suspended, according to BGNES, citing Nova TV.
"Everyone wants positions – in regulatory bodies and ministries," he emphasized.
Bulgaria’s toll system now has the technical capability to track average vehicle speeds, as announced by the National Toll Management following a meeting with Regional Development Minister Violeta Koritarova.
The income required to cover living expenses for a working individual and a three-member family with a child under 14 has remained almost unchanged compared to June, according to an analysis by the Confederation of Independent Trade Unions in Bulgaria (CI
The Council of Ministers has adopted a resolution to set the minimum wage at 1,077 leva, reflecting a 15.
Every 20 minutes, fire alerts are received from across Bulgaria.
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