Tensions erupt yet again in Bulgaria’s government minority partner
Internal strife is again out in the open in the United Patriots, the grouping of far-right and ultra-nationalist parties that is the minority partner in Bulgarian Prime Minister Boiko Borissov’s coalition government.
A week after dissension in the United Patriots over the amendments to the Fuels Act, which saw part of the group back the amendments and another reject them as lobbyist, there is a dispute over amendments to the Privatisation and Post-Privatisation Control Act.
On July 18, Valentin Kassabov, an MP for United Patriots co-leader and Deputy Prime Minister Valeri Simeonov’s National Front for the Salvation of Bulgaria (NFSB) party, attacked Borissov’s GERB party over the amendments, which the NFSB said were geared to favour specific business people.
The following morning, another of the United Patriots’ co-leaders, Volen Siderov who heads the Ataka party, rejected allegations of the amendments being lobbyist and said that they were necessary.
Siderov went on to attack Simeonov, who had said that were the amendments adopted, his NFSB would leave the coalition.
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