The 2026 draft budget should not be supported, but not with the arguments of the PP-DB, but because social payments are frozen and the pension insurance contribution is increased by 2%. This was stated in an interview with the Bulgarian National Radio by the independent municipal councilor in the SOS Vanya Grigorova.
And this is what she would recommend to Dimitar Manolov, president of the "Podkrepa" council, whose advisor she was until her candidacy for mayor of Sofia in 2023.
"Both Ms. Sacheva and Manolov know which are the loopholes that need to be closed. First - private pension funds (PPF) should not be mandatory. This deprives the NSSI fund of over 3 billion leva per year. We have a maximum social security income, and 9 billion leva per year could flow into all the NSSI funds if the two holes are closed," said Vanya Grigorova on the "12+3" show.
She commented on the draft budget for 2026 and believes that it is being suggested that this is a social budget:
"GERB is showing unworthy behavior, they are justifying themselves with the coalition partners - with the BSP. It is being suggested that this is an exclusively social budget. The BSP has not won anything, and now they are apologizing for achievements they do not have."
Grigorova pointed out that the budget shows a drastic increase in military spending, and it was not the BSP and the unions who insisted on raising the social security contribution by 2%. And he explained that in the public sector there are firefighters, doctors, teachers, and not, as they call them, 600,000 bagmen.
"The problem with the budget is the defense costs, the war, and I'm not talking about the salaries in the army. I counted the word "defense" among the motives in the budget 70 times, education 41 and healthcare 13. This shows the preponderance of spending for 2026, it is not only linguistic, but over 6 billion leva this year are set in the budget", commented Grigorova.
She admitted that there is criticism of the unions that they do not want enough, "6 billion leva for armament, and you have not achieved the teachers' salary at 125% of the average".
She pointed out that there are no texts for 150% of the average salary to be for doctors. And she predicts protests from doctors, because this is not done through a law, but through a CTD, which the ministers of health have refused to sign in recent years.
"This year, about 17 billion leva are loans for the pensions of today's pensioners and they were to blame for the 2025 budget. Next year, the loans are on the backs of workers, and for 2027, I expect the beggars, the poor and mothers to be to blame," said Grigorova.
As a municipal councilor in the SOS, she pointed out that there is no majority to make a decision.
"There is uncertainty and it prevents the city from developing," she pointed out. And she is categorical that she will not support the reports on expanding paid parking and introducing a red zone, as well as raising prices.