site.btaMedia Review: June 19

POLITICS

The national radio and other media outline Parliament’s agenda on Thursday.

The Members of Parliament are to adopt texts regulating the insolvency proceedings of individuals who are insolvent but are bona fide debtors and wish to have their obligations to all creditors satisfied in a single court proceeding.

Changes to the Tobacco and Related Products Act will also be discussed at second reading. The legislative initiative introduces a complete ban on the marketing of electronic cigarettes, whether or not they contain nicotine, i.e. vapes and similar devices.

The war in the Middle East is also on the agenda in Parliament. The topic will be discussed at a meeting of the Foreign Affairs Committee.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is expected to provide information on the development of the conflict and Bulgaria's position. However, the meeting will be closed.

With 122 votes in favour, GERB-UDF, BSP – United Left, There Is Such a People and MRF – New Beginning forced Democracy, Rights and Freedoms – DRF to change its name within three days. The words “democracy” and “movement” begin with the same letter in Bulgarian, which has led to an overlap of the abbreviations the two formations are using. Vazrazhdane and DRF-DRF opposed the decision. If Ahmed Dogan's parliamentary group does not change its name within the specified period, it will be given the name under which it registered for the elections – Alliance for Rights and Freedoms (ARF).

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Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov and Executive Vice-President of the European Commission for a Clean, Just and Competitive Transition Teresa Ribera will participate in the debates on decarbonisation and clean industry within the framework of the international Green Transition Forum, which is being held in Sofia, BNR reports.

Topics include the European Clean Industrial Deal, the decarbonisation of Bulgarian heavy industry, and reducing dependence on countries outside the European Union by securing strategic resources and local production.

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Twelve people, part of the diplomatic mission in Tehran, have been evacuated from Iran along with their families, Nova TV reports. “We are not closing the embassy, but moving it to Baku until the danger passes,” Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov said.

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Continue the Change co-leader Kiril Petkov told bTV that MRF – New Beginning leader Delyan Peevski and GERB leader Boyko Borissov seem unable to orchestrate the appointment of a head of the Anti-Corruption Commission because they need 160 votes in Parliament. “Since they cannot [garner the votes] and are very afraid that their old corruption schemes will be exposed, the whole of Bulgaria is currently waiting for these 10 billion [leva in EU finding under the Recovery and Resilience Plan – ed.]

ECONOMY

The conflict in the Middle East will further worsen global economic prospects, which are already strained by ongoing trade disputes, International Monetary Fund (IMF) Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said in an interview with Euronews, quoted by Trud. According to her, economic uncertainty is becoming the new norm. In this uncertain context, she also sees opportunities that must be seized: a perspective shared by the European Commission, which is pursuing a strategy of diversifying its trading partners by expanding the number of trade agreements worldwide.

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“Two weeks have passed since the start of mass inspections in commercial outlets. The first was on June 3, the second on June 17. I already have clear information about some of the goods. Unfortunately, there has been an increase in all 14 groups of large goods inspected. The biggest increase is in mineral water. Two companies that sell 1.5-litre bottles of mineral water have increased their prices by 40% within two weeks,” Rumen Spetsov, Director General of the National Revenue Agency, told bTV. According to him, the entire process will now be investigated.

“This increase has nothing to do with inflation. We are talking about sheer profiteering. That is why we are intervening to impose some correction on this increase. We have identified those who are raising prices. I advise them to return the price to where it was on June 3 in the coming days,” he added.

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Finance Minister Temenuzhka Petkova and Bulgarian National Bank Governor Dimitar Radev will attend a Eurogroup informal meeting of finance ministers from countries using the euro, Trud and BNR report. The meeting, which traditionally takes place the day before the ECOFIN Council meeting, will be held in Luxembourg.

During the discussions, representatives of the European Commission and the European Central Bank will present their assessments of Bulgaria's readiness to join the euro area.

The eurozone ministers will then discuss and vote on draft recommendations for the country to be accepted as the 21st member of the eurozone, effective January 1, 2026.

Leaders will discuss the issue at their meeting at the end of next week. The decision must then be endorsed by the European Parliament at its July session, with the process concluding on July 8 at the Economic and Financial Affairs Council.

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Bulgaria has surpassed Hungary in terms of standard of living, according to Eurostat data, Trud reports. In recent years, Bulgaria has always ranked last among EU countries. For the first time in 2024, it surpassed Hungary in terms of actual individual consumption (AIC) per capita, and now ranks second-to-last.

In Bulgaria, individual consumption per capita is 26% below the EU average, putting this country on a par with Estonia. Hungary ranks last, with individual consumption 28% below the EU average. Actual individual consumption covers all goods and services actually consumed by households. It includes consumer goods and services purchased directly by households, as well as services provided by non-profit organizations and the government, such as health and education services.

The AIC indicator is a better measure of living standards than gross domestic product (GDP) per capita because it also takes into account price differences between countries.

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President Rumen Radev and the Ambassador of the Czech Republic to Bulgaria, Miroslav Toman, will attend the official opening of the new production facility of BTL Industries Bulgaria in Plovdiv, BNR reports.

BTL Industries is a global leader in the development and manufacture of medical equipment for physiotherapy, cardiology and aesthetic medicine.

The investment is worth nearly BGN 100 million and is one of the largest Czech investments made in Bulgaria.

The new plant will provide modern working conditions for over 700 employees. It is expected that 500 new jobs will be created in the next few years.

CULTURE

Actor Pavel Popandov received the award for lifetime achievement in cinema at the 12th “Golden Linden” international festival for new European cinema in Stara Zagora, BNR reports. He planted his own lime tree sapling in the city's Alley of Lime Trees, where the other eleven award winners also have trees. Pavel Popandov has played over 100 roles in cinema.

Popandov never takes on a role he doesn't like, no matter how much it costs him. In his opinion, personality comes before artistry.

“You are an actor for 2-3 hours, the performance ends, the film ends, and then you are first and foremost a person. If you are not welcomed with open arms, that's not good at all,” Popandov explains.

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Pleven is hosting the second congress of the Bulgarian Association of Minimally Invasive and Robotic Surgery (BAMIRS), the national radio said. International scientists will present the latest developments in this field from June 19 to 21. The motto of this year's congress is ‘Minimally invasive, maximally effective’.

“A surgical operation with a robot will be broadcast live from St. Marina Hospital. This congress is an investment in the new generation of young surgeons. We must inspire them to perform telesurgery,” said Corresponding Member Prof. Slavcho Tomov – a distinguished surgeon of robot-assisted gynecology in Bulgaria, Rector of the Medical University of Pleven and a leading specialist in the Saint Marina Hospital there.

BULGARIAN OLYMPIC COMMITTEE

The International Olympic Committee sent a letter to the Bulgarian Olympic Committee and its elected president Vesela Lecheva, informing them of the next steps to be taken against the BOC, Trud reports. The instructions were also sent to the Association of National Olympic Committees (ANOC) and the European Olympic Committee (EOC).

The letter is a follow-up to the previous correspondence from May 17, 2025, in which the IOC gave clear instructions. To date, these have not been implemented, as the new BOC leadership still does not have access to the administration, information channels and office at 4 Angel Kanchev Street.

As a precautionary measure, and in view of the uncertainty of the current situation, the IOC/Olympic Solidarity and the EOC will suspend all future payments to the BOC, with the exception of direct payments to athletes who receive Olympic scholarships, until Lecheva confirms that she and the newly elected leadership are in control of the BOC's operations and bank account.