In 2025, despite the difficult and tortured majority that this National Assembly had, the government managed to push through dozens of reforms related to the Recovery and Resilience Plan (RRP). Thanks to this, Bulgaria was able to receive two billion euros last year, which is extremely important for ensuring payments. This was said by GERB-SDF MP and former Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Innovation and Growth Tomislav Donchev on the day of the last regular session of the current parliament, quoted by BTA.
Four weeks since we have been back in the National Assembly, together with our former ministers, we have invested all possible efforts to ensure the adoption of the remaining eight laws related to the fourth and fifth payments. I think that by the end of this parliament's work we will be able to boast of an intermediate success and have secured support for half of them, Donchev added. Regarding the remaining four laws that do not meet support, the plan is to seek a majority for them in the new National Assembly, the MP said.
The request for the fourth payment under the plan should be sent by the end of March, and the fifth - probably by June. For me, the biggest risk is that one of the payments will be late or at least part of the amounts under it, said Tomislav Donchev.
For more than 20 years, Bulgaria has been talking about a Lobbying Law. Three attempts have been made, but it has not been adopted. Four years ago, in the PVU, Bulgaria committed to developing and adopting a Lobbying Law, in return for which it would receive nearly 440 million euros free of charge, said GERB-SDF MP and former Justice Minister Georgi Georgiev. For comparison - these are the investments in the repairs that are currently underway in 80 of the homes for the elderly, where 5,600 Bulgarian citizens are accommodated, he added.
From the “Zhelyazkov“ cabinet, we prepared the bill on lobbying and the work that we started as ministers, we finished as deputies. We expect that the bill will be supported in the plenary hall shortly, said Georgiev. According to him, the adoption of this bill is of utmost importance, firstly, in order to fulfill the commitment and for Bulgaria to provide the funds that would otherwise have to come from the pockets of taxpayers and, secondly, so that 20 years after the initial attempts, rules can be introduced on who and how influences the authorities in the process of making decisions on the content of the laws.
Over the past two weeks, there has been mass hysteria that 437 million euros will be lost in connection with the Renewable Energy Law. Today, between the first and second rounds, GERB-SDF introduced the necessary legislative changes, which make these funds fully available based on the implemented reform - imposing an obligation on municipalities to provide charging points for electric vehicles, said GERB-SDF MP and former Energy Minister Zhecho Stankov. Based on this reform, the current and future governments will have the opportunity to request this payment, he added.
If all reforms are not implemented, part of the payment funds may be postponed, Tomislav Donchev replied when asked whether the fourth payment under the PVP is in danger.