site.btaEuropean Commission Welcomes Bill Increasing Accountability of Bulgaria's Prosecutor General

European Commissioner for Justice Didier Reynders Tuesday welcomed the bill increasing the accountability of Bulgaria's Prosecutor General. He commented on the topic at a news conference after a Council of the EU meeting that began the discussion on rule of law matters in Bulgaria, Belgium, and Czechia. Thus far, all Member States have undergone this discussion, Reynders noted. 

In his words, the last two years have seen several positive events in Bulgaria. He gave as an example Bulgaria's intention to introduce an effective mechanism for seeking criminal responsibility from the Prosecutor General and their deputies. The European Commission welcomes this intention related to the plan for Bulgarian economy's recovery from the pandemic, Reynders said. Such a reform would reflect the concerns raised by the Commission in its reports on the rule of law in the EU and in its earlier assessments under the Cooperation and Verification Mechanism, he added.

He went on to say that the Bulgarian Counter-corruption and Unlawfully Acquired Assets Forfeiture Commission is working, and he knows that additional changes are envisaged to broaden its options for action. The European Commission has recommended progress on corruption investigations, he specified.

The Commissioner noted the measures taken to increase public servants' integrity and the fact that lobbyism in Bulgaria is poorly covered by the legislation. The Commission has recommended improvements regarding the media aimed at increasing transparency in the provision of state resources for advertisement, Reynders said.