site.btaCouncil of Ministers to Approve 2026 State Budget Bill, Submit It to Parliament

The Council of Ministers will approve the 2026 state budget bill and submit it to Parliament on Thursday, GERB leader Boyko Borissov told reporters in the National Assembly. 

An extraordinary meeting of the social partners to discuss the budget had been scheduled for Thursday but was later called off after employer organizations once again refused to take part in the National Council for Tripartite Cooperation’s budget talks.

Commenting on the US sanctions on Lukoil, Borissov said: "I can guarantee that Bulgaria will obtain an exemption." "Once the veto [imposed by President Rumen Radev] is overridden, we will have a decision by next Monday or Tuesday so that the Bulgarian people can feel at ease," he added. He went on to say that the government is working to ensure both the Lukoil refinery in Burgas and its employees continue to operate smoothly, and that a special administrator will be appointed.

Borissov said he had asked Finance Minister Temenuzhka Petkova to speak with the two banks that service Lukoil’s gas stations, as they intend to enforce the ban ahead of schedule. In his words, this could cause problems since the gas stations would be unable to make payments, though there is still time before the November 21 sanctions deadline. "We have no complaints about Lukoil. They are complying with everything," he noted.

"Radev has done what is necessary to delay the decision by a week. I do not know what he gains from this; that is his business," Borissov said, rejecting claims that he and MRF–New Beginning Floor Leader Delyan Peevski are trying to sell the refinery. "Neither Peevski, nor I, nor [former Continue the Change co-chair] Kiril Petkov — no one can afford to buy such a refinery," the GERB leader added.