The parliament adopted the law known as “Anti-speculation” on first reading, which introduces a price increase ceiling for food and services. The leader of “Stand Up, Bulgaria” Maya Manolova commented on the topic in the program “Offensive with Lyubo Ognyanov” on NOVA NEWS.
“With their inaction 6 months before entering the eurozone, against the backdrop of a brutal increase in the prices of basic food products, medicines and services, the indifference of the deputies was astonishing”, said Manolova. She emphasized that the sudden adoption of the law is probably due to the upcoming elections and the real increase in the cost of living, which parliamentarians can no longer ignore.
Manolova highlighted specific examples of price jumps. She also recalled data from a report by the CPC, according to which price increases for dairy products reach 90%.
“I strongly hope that the parliament will adopt this law on second reading, because otherwise the deputies will not be able to appear before the people on the most important topic - the increase in the cost of living”, said Manolova.
According to her, the “Anti-speculation” law was built on the experience of European countries, which applied price ceilings and price increase controls before entering the eurozone. “Croatia, Hungary, Greece, France and Italy have successful practices. Germany is also already discussing a "German basket" with controlled prices for basic food products, she explained.
Manolova also emphasized the difficult situation on the Bulgarian market. "Bulgaria is the country with the most distorted market. The first two retail chains have a total turnover of 7 billion leva and impose markups of up to 90% on dairy products. There should be limited markups in order to protect Bulgarian producers and citizens," she said.
At the end of the conversation, she was categorical that "the "Anti-Speculation" law is crucial for the people." "Accept it, otherwise you will not be able to appear before the voters in the upcoming campaign," she concluded.