In a declaration from the rostrum of the National Assembly, the chairman of the PG of “Progressive Bulgaria” Petar Vitanov took stock of the work done before the MPs went on summer vacation, a FOCUS reporter reported.
The MPs voted on their summer vacation today. It will be from August 5 to 23.
"Three months are just the beginning and there is no room for complacency. I thank all the MPs from “Progressive Bulgaria”. Most of you found yourself in a new and demanding field, but you compensated for your lack of experience with great dedication and motivation. You were subjected to great pressure, criticism and provocations. You had to quickly realize that the Parliament building is not an ordinary workplace, but an arena for political battles", he said and added:
"In these 3 months, we all had no time to hesitate, we made mistakes, we adjusted on the fly, we got to know each other in the process of work, but I assure you that we learned the lessons that the opposition did not fail to convey to us". Vitanov stated that from day one they started fulfilling their election promises and took stock of what had been accomplished:
-We adopted the Law on the Judiciary, which opened the procedure for electing a new composition of the Supreme Judicial Council, whose mandate has expired, and today we already have rules for electing new members of the Council from the parliamentary quota. It depends on the opposition to have a new Prosecutor General by the end of this year - 160 votes are needed. If the opposition refuses - this will be yet another proof that some parties exist only to abuse the trust of the voters.
-A few days ago we adopted the possible Law on the State Budget. It is realistic - with a deficit of 5.7% of GDP and a minimum wage of 620 euros. It guarantees the financial stability of the state and provides resources for social policies. All this despite the bequeathed hidden deficit of the experienced managers from GERB and the financial wizards from “We continue the change”. The Parliament adopted all the legal changes necessary to implement the reforms under the PVP, which were forgotten for years.
-Among the adopted changes are the key anti-corruption laws – the creation of a new politically independent anti-corruption commission and the improvement of the mechanism for independent investigation of the Prosecutor General. With these decisions, Bulgaria fulfills its commitments to Europe and unlocks billions of euros under the PVP.
-We have brought back machine voting. With the changes to the Electoral Code, we have taken another step towards the dreamed-of end of the bought and controlled vote. We restored justice for all Bulgarians abroad by removing the restriction on sections in countries outside the European Union.
-After the ugly 30-second sessions of the previous parliament and the lobbying decisions related to the special manager of Lukoil, the Constitutional Court ruled that these decisions of the previous government were wrong. We corrected them too. We adopted legal changes that allow the state to take temporary measures to protect the public interest and energy security with regard to companies trading in oil and oil products. With this act, we restore state control over key energy companies.
The MP also said that the Bulgarian National Party has frozen MP salaries, reduced party subsidies and granted the opposition the right to head parliamentary committees. He thanked the opposition for the frequent criticism.
"Colleagues from the opposition, please come after the vacation - we will be waiting for you here. With our program for governance, with the prepared laws and with 131 deputies, who are not a number, but motivated and worthy people who work for Bulgaria. Come after the vacation not with demagogy, but with ideas. The cause of Bulgaria stands above the parties. Whoever understands it is our partner," he concluded.