site.btaVazrazhdane Says Government's "Revised" Programme Confirms Election Pledges Cannot Be Fulfilled

The Vazrazhdane party said on Wednesday that the fact that the incumbents have revised their governance programme confirms that the pledges they made during the election campaign cannot be fulfilled under the Euro-Atlantic policy line being pursued by the government.

In a statement released by its press office, Vazrazhdane asked: "What happened to the Care Basket [an optional food price control scheme]? Why did it fail so quickly? What is happening with prices, which are rising partly because of [Prime Minister] Radev's inaction and the action of his caretaker governments, which worked to bring Bulgaria into the eurozone?" the party asked.

In his former capacity as president, the incumbent prime minister, Rumen Radev, was responsible for appointing caretaker governments when regular ones stepped down early.

According to Vazrazhdane, Radev's current regular government talks about investment, while apparently considering concession operations disguised as investments. "We remind you that just days ago they handed the Khan Tervel gas field over to the Turkish state, and now we expect to hear what will happen with the Black Sea motorway, which we suspect will be the next gift in exchange for freezing the BOTAS deal - an unfavourable [natural gas] agreement concluded by Radev's former caretaker government," the party said.

"All the remaining empty talk, hollow phrases and outright lies by the prime minister about increasing productivity and everything else can be aptly summed up by a colourful Bulgarian proverb: 'A pair of pistols on a bare belly'," the party said in its statement.

"Bulgaria has exported its human potential; more than two million Bulgarians are abroad. Today, our country is importing workers from third countries because there is no one here willing to work under the conditions offered by businesses," Vazrazhdane added.

"Instead of working to solve this problem, Radev first shut down the Population Affairs Committee in the National Assembly and then proposed closing the state-funded in-vitro fertilization programme, which helps childless couples conceive," the party also said. According to Vazrazhdane, Radev's ruling Progressive Bulgaria party has shown that it has no intention of addressing the demographic problem - meaning that there will increasingly be no one left to work here.

"Today, Radev and his government are trying to distract us with a 'model of accelerated economic development'," the party said. "By importing Africans and Asians? This is not a model for accelerated development, but for the accelerated destruction of the nation and the state," the statement said.

Earlier on Wednesday, the government adopted a Programme for Governance of the Republic of Bulgaria 2026-2030. Its main objective is to build a modern, social, secure and high-tech European state with sustainable institutions, a competitive economy and a long-term development outlook that guarantees the well-being of its citizens, protects the national interest and preserves Bulgaria as a strong, vibrant and prosperous nation state for future generations, the government press service said.

The programme contains 20 key areas, each of which sets out priorities - the main areas for intervention; measures - specific tools and actions for achieving the objectives; and expected effects - the anticipated outcomes of government policy.