site.btaUPDATED President Radev: If Anyone Owes Bulgarians Answers about Euro, It Is Those Who Submitted Request for Ad Hoc Report

If anyone owes answers to the Bulgarian people about the euro, it is those who submitted a request for an extraordinary convergence report, for whom our readiness for the euro area is limited to advertising and the technical preparation of post offices and banks to exchange currency, President Rumen Radev told journalists in Varshets on Monday.

The President added that it was those who forgot about people with severe social problems, especially vulnerable to any price hike. “The incumbents are talking about measures in the future, meaning they will protect us from possible price shocks after the adoption of the euro,” the president said. But the experience of other countries that have adopted the euro shows that as soon as the convergence report is announced, a steady rise in prices, especially of services in the national currency, begins, Radev stressed. He added that in these countries, by the time of euro adoption, serious significant price increases accumulated, especially in the months before the adoption of the euro.

In response to a question, he said that, unlike others, he would not comment on what the Constitutional Court was obliged to do. “What I expect is for the laws to be respected, Radev stressed. Everyone, including the chair of the National Assembly, must act within the framework set by the law - both in their decisions and speech. I cannot and should not comment on the decisions of the Constitutional Court,” Radev said. The body that decides whether or not to have a referendum is the National Assembly, he added.

The President urged people to keep an eye out for unjustified price hikes because there was obviously no one else to do it for them. The government had to be fully prepared with measures, with financial buffers, because the standard of people from socially vulnerable groups could deteriorate sharply, in a few months, and the economy would need years to regain that standard, Radev said. According to him, there is a risk of increasing social division. Measures are required now, not somewhere in the future. “In a race to catch up with "Europe’s first speed ", Bulgaria itself may become of two speeds,” the President said

Radev said that Bulgaria is the poorest country in the EU, and according to the National Statistical Institute every third Bulgarian is at a risk of poverty and over 1.3 million Bulgarians are below the poverty line. Any price shock could condemn thousands of compatriots to marginalization, Radev said. The President pointed out that he had expected the government, by submitting the request for an extraordinary convergence report, to come out with an objective risk assessment, with an assessment of their readiness to counter any speculation and with financial buffers. Radev added that he has not seen anything.

The President said that a month later, with the adoption of the budget, he had seen neither a strong social package nor any financial buffers. On May 5, when the report on the quarterly report of the Ministry of Finance came out, it became clear that even if the government intended to counteract a possible price shock, it had no resources, Radev said. He commented that speculation about his proposed referendum had grown into hysteria. This referendum is not against the euro but about our readiness to adopt the euro from 2026, the president said. According to Radev, the best thing for the government is to ask for the support of the Bulgarian citizens, if the incumbent are so convinced that everything is fine. “If they get it, we take the whole society jointly responsible and we join the euro area. If not, they will have a year to convince the people,” the head of State said.

Asked about the creation of a constituency for Bulgarians abroad and whether if it was time for a referendum on the issue, President Radev said he would give his opinion on the matter when he sees amendments  on such a constituency. “I have made many initiatives and meetings with political parties, I also spoke from the parliamentary rostrum that our compatriots abroad should be given the opportunity to vote more actively through remote electronic voting or by mail,” said Radev, who added that he is in favour of having eased voting conditions for Bulgarians abroad.