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Bulgaria keeps 2009 macroeconomic plan

Monday, Dec 08, 2008

The leaders of Bulgaria’s ruling coalition decided to go ahead with next year’s macroeconomic framework and the planned investment and social spending in spite of the global economic downturn.

Sources told Dnevnik earlier in the week that the leaders would consider also a pessimistic scenario and might redraft the plan.

Farmers will get BGN 211 million from the public investment spending reserve, their first state aid outside EU subsidies, under a proposal of predominantly ethnic Turkish MRF.

A further BGN 94.5 million of the reserve will go for railway infrastructure upgrades, and the rest will be spent on socially important projects.

The maternity leave will be extended to 12 months from nine months at present provided that the mother has paid social security contributions for the previous 12 instead of six months, under the proposal of the centrist NDSV party led by former king Simeon Saxe-Coburg Gotha.

The cut in government consumption and the budget surplus will be enough to save Bulgaria from the ongoing economic crisis, according to the party leaders.

The 3% budget surplus target may be slashed to 1% to fill in a possible gap in public spending.

Macroeconomist Lachezar Bogdanov welcomed the wider scope for spending but criticised the lack of reforms to boost public sector efficiency.

Source: Dnevnik a.m.