The economy is not present in the pre-election competition between candidates and parties.
This is an old phenomenon, the last pre-election programs and discussions with in-depth attention to economic challenges are from mid-2005. The latest innovations in economic (or rather budget) policy are from 2011.
This recalls on "Facebook" associate professor Dr. Krasen Stanchev.
The result of the pre-election debate of 2005 was, firstly, the rejection of the ideas of the BSP to dissolve financial discipline (copied by the Hungarian socialists at the time and already failed in Hungary itself), and the introduction of a flat, easy-to-pay and a relatively low flat tax on corporate (2007) and personal income (2008).
The third positive development after the elections of that year was the introduction of a well-functioning protection of the rights of creditors, with effective protection of debtors, with the adoption of a functioning and fair Code of Civil Procedure and the privatization of the enforcement of payment collection.
In 2011, as a lesson from the experience of the recession (“crisis”) of 2008-2009, the imperfections of the EU fiscal health standards were realized. That is why Bulgaria introduced stricter rules for the stability of public finances: 2% of GDP budget deficit and 40% of GDP external public debt.
As a result of these changes:
- Bulgaria took first place in the world in terms of access to foreign savings (so-called foreign direct investments); in 2006-2008, 90 cents of every new lev of income of the people in Bulgaria came from FDI; the enterprises that worked then - privatized or with investments “on a green meadow” - in 2024, the contribution is between 30 and 35 cents from every BGN income.
- Since 2000, the personal wealth of Bulgarian citizens has increased 12 times.
- About 15 years ago, the country entered the group of the 50 freest countries in economic terms in the world.
- Two years ago - this fact was realized earlier this year - Bulgaria qualified for membership in the club of “high-income countries”.
- Until 2020, Bulgaria's public finances are one of the healthiest in the EU and allow painless coverage of the costs caused by large predatory ventures, such as the KTB case (huge budget losses in 2014) and the NPP project - with cost of a lost arbitration case with Atomstroyexport).
After 2021, all these achievements are under threat or already certain to be lost.