Finance Minister in the caretaker cabinet Rositza Velkova has asked the ministries, by letter, to cut expenditure by 20% due to a risk to the budget, Trud and 24 Chasa write in their online versions.

The cause for concern is the accumulated spending because of bills voted by the previous parliaments. “Implementing them undermines the budget balance, and a deficit of 7% for 2023 is to be expected,” Minister Velkova stated, and went on to enumerate the factors that are the biggest threat to fiscal stability: the increase in pensions and social payments, the reduced taxes and the non-implementation of European and investment programmes. To cover the deficit, the country will have to take out new loans and the debt could reach up to 60% of the GDP, Rositza Velkova warned.