2024-09-16 06:40:43
The subject of the Recovery and Sustainability Plan remained in the background during the meeting and therefore Bulgaria can be fined, said former Deputy Prime Minister Atanas Pekanov on NOVA. He explained that after we received about a quarter of 12 billion, we now have a tranche of 1.5 billion, and there are only 2 more years of the plan left.
The plan was accepted as it is. We are now moving on the steps we need to take. In 2022, there are no other payments, we have to pass these three laws, plus a few more measures, he said.
“If we do not accept them, the European Commission will punish us and take part of the money from the second payment. The whole remaining plan is BGN 10 billion, the second payment is BGN 1.5 billion, of which I guess we will lose at least BGN 500 million. Because there are still things we haven’t finished. Colleagues from the PP-DB are right that these three laws must happen,” added Pekanov.
“We are on the second payment out of 8. Countries on our list – Greece, Croatia, they are among the best, they have already taken 60%, the same is the case with Spain and Italy, countries that need money”, explained the former Deputy Prime Minister euro funds.
He said that in Italy there was even an excessive program of renovating housing, the state even paid a bonus to people to do it.
The EC made a compromise with us because we had an official cabinet without a parliament and no one to pass the laws.
“Bulgaria has lost the respect of the EC,” said Pekanov and emphasized that if we do not adopt the laws we have committed to Europe, there will certainly be sanctions. He expressed bewilderment as to why these laws were not changed when there was a majority in the parliament He also commented that even if there were many criticisms of GERB, during Borisov’s administration there was at least stability in terms of receiving European funds.