site.btaDeputy PM Zafirov and Opposition Clash over 2026 State Budget as Protests Loom

Deputy Prime Minister Atanas Zafirov said on Bulgarian National Radio (BNR) on Sunday that all debate about what kind of budget the Government is proposing ended on the day the bill entered Parliament. From this point on, he said, it is the joint budget of the governing majority and the Cabinet, and must be defended as such.

He noted that the draft budget contains measures for which he cannot understand the criticism, such as increasing second-year maternity benefits.

Zafirov also pointed out that the so-called Swiss rule for pensions is being preserved and that income growth, as a key policy of the Government, continues.

"These critics should stop filling the media space with threats and talking about Greek and Romanian scenarios," Zafirov said, adding that Bulgaria’s public debt will remain around 30% of GDP. Claims that the budget harms people’s incomes create panic and spread falsehoods at a moment when Bulgaria is on the threshold of joining the eurozone, he warned.

According to him, the root of the backlash lies in the fact that Bulgarian employers and part of society do not like the increase in the dividend tax and the social-security contribution's ceiling. Zafirov commented that these measures primarily affect the wealthier segment of the population.

He added that the position of the trade unions is far more balanced and that they understand this is the feasible budget. "Of course it is the product of many compromises - we are different parties with different ideologies. Naturally, we all want to see more reforms in this budget, but ultimately we should be satisfied that its social benefits are significantly increased," Zafirov said.

Continue the Change – Democratic Bulgaria's (CC-DB) Floor Leader, Nikolay Denkov, told BNR that there will be every reason for protests - and that these protests are only beginning. According to him, taxes are being raised while the draft budget includes massive borrowing; under this plan, Bulgaria accumulates BGN 60 million in new debt every day. Denkov said some sectors receive very large increases despite already having relatively high wages, while others are harmed by the budget.

Commenting the  upcoming Tuesday protest related to the draft budget before journalists later on Sunday, Denkov clarified: “I don’t know where the word 'occupation' came from. We have not planned in any way to occupy Parliament.” What CC-DB is calling for, he said, is for citizens to come and express their views on the budget bring discussed. The protest, he explained, will take place when the Parliamentary Budget and Finance Committee meets, because that is the final moment when proposals from the different political groups are reviewed. “This is the moment when the budget should be balanced. We used every parliamentary tool, pointed out where the deficits are, made proposals for how to balance the budget - but none of the governing parties paid attention. I hope they at least understand that citizens must be heard,” Denkov said.

The Vazrazhdane party is willing to support an occupation of Parliament, its leader Kostadin Kostadinov told reporters in Parliament when asked about his party's position regarding the Continue the Change initiative.