site.btaCC Chair Vassilev Calls 2026 Draft State Budget Scandalous, Attributes It to Arrogance or Incompetence

Continue the Change Chair Assen Vassilev described the 2026 draft state budget as “scandalous”. “While reading it, I wondered whether it was arrogance or incompetence that had led to its creation,” the MP told reporters on Wednesday in the corridors of Parliament.

He added that earlier in the day, the ruling parties had voted abstain and against Labour Code amendments increasing compensation for unused maternity leave from 50% to 100%. According to him, the proposal did not pass due to the votes of GERB-UDF and BSP - United Left and it became clear that those in power are not thinking about Bulgarian citizens but rather making “their own subtle party calculations”.

Regarding the proposal, the MP added that it would also benefit the budget. “Working people pay more in social security contributions than they receive in benefits, which is good for families, as they receive 100% of their maternity benefits in the second year. It is also good for employers, as women return to work earlier,” Vassilev explained.

Vassilev described GERB leader Boyko Borissov's statement that he had held numerous discussions in his office with him, former Continue the Change co-chair Kiril Petkov and former Democratic Bulgaria co-chair Hristo Ivanov on how to lift the sanctions against MRF - New Beginning Floor Leader Delyan Peevski as a complete lie. “The only thing I did regarding the Magnitsky case was, when the sanctions were imposed in 2021, to propose a solution to the Council of Ministers as acting minister, whereby the sanctions were extended in Bulgaria in order to preserve the Bulgarian financial system,” Vassilev explained.

The MP added that the sanctions against Peevski are fair. According to him, Bulgaria is the only country where individuals sanctioned under the Magnitsky Act have not been investigated and convicted. He added that other countries imprison individuals sanctioned under the Magnitsky Act. He pointed out that it was strange to be talking to our European partners about lifting sanctions against former finance minister Vladislav Goranov and Peevski.

Delyan Peevski was designated by the United States under the Global Magnitsky Act in 2021 for corruption and influence peddling. He is challenging the designation in a U.S. court, with his lawyers arguing that there is no evidence of wrongdoing. In 2023, the United Kingdom also sanctioned Peevski for his alleged involvement “in attempts to exert control over key institutions and sectors in Bulgarian society through bribery and the use of his media empire.”