site.btaParliament Establishes Investment Coordination Council

Parliament adopted at second reading amendments to the Investment Promotion Act, creating an Investment Coordination Council under the Council of Ministers and aligning the legislation with the Government's new ministerial structure.

The amendments reflect the redistribution of responsibilities between the Economy, Investments and Industry Ministry and the Innovation and Digital Transformation Ministry. They also regulate the transformation of the former economy and industry ministry and part of the former innovation and growth ministry into the Economy, Investments and Industry Ministry.

The new council will consist of 10 members and will be chaired by the Deputy Prime Minister and Economy, Investments and Industry Minister. It will be responsible for coordinating investment policy, proposing a national investment promotion strategy, addressing obstacles to investment and supporting efforts to attract investors.

Parliament also decided that investors from countries party to the European Economic Area Agreement, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and OECD Member States will be treated as low-risk jurisdictions for the investment screening mechanism.

Vazrazhdane Deputy Floor Leader Peter Petrov argued that the new council duplicates the functions of the Bulgarian Investment Agency and called for regular reporting to Parliament.

Progressive Bulgaria MP Daniel Parushev said the changes would support economic growth and broaden investment opportunities by extending the low-risk category to additional OECD countries.

Democratic Bulgaria Deputy Floor Leader Bozhidar Bozhanov criticized amendments introduced between first and second reading, arguing that they could allow public procurement rules to be bypassed.