site.btaState Must Stop “Stealing” From Citizens, Caretaker Finance Minister Says

Caretaker Finance Minister Georgi Klisurski told Parliament on Thursday that it was high time for the state to “stop stealing from its own citizens” in 2026, arguing that this would ease pressure on the budget deficit. 

Responding to a question on whether the Ministry of Finance had analyzed potential spending cuts, Klisurski said that during his roughly two-and-a-half months in office he had ordered more than 100 financial inspections by the Public Financial Inspection Agency. He said the government had identified public procurement procedures and contracts across ministries, agencies and municipalities that failed to safeguard public resources and taxpayers’ money. 

“To put it differently, there is theft in the state, and I hope this comes to an end,” Klisurski said. He added that abuses were most common in public procurement for current expenditure, including repairs to schools, nurseries, clinics, emergency centres and roads. 

“We all know about our poor roads, about advance payments handed out in sacks for motorway construction, and so on,” he said. According to Klisurski, such practices not only endanger citizens’ lives and health but also amount to “outright theft” from taxpayers. 

He said eliminating unnecessary and unlawful spending and properly calculating procurement and current expenditure would free up significant public resources, allowing for more meaningful investments and reducing pressure on the deficit. 

“It is absolutely high time in 2026 for the state to stop stealing from its own citizens,” Klisurski added. 

During Thursday's hearing on the state of public finances, Klisurski said the fiscal situation remained stable under the extended budget framework.

He added that funds currently available in the fiscal reserve would be sufficient to cover all state spending until a regular budget is adopted.