Bulgarian Parliament approves draft 2026 Budget package at first reading
Eight months after Bulgaria’s 51st National Assembly adopted a 2026 Budget at first reading – a package that sparked large-scale protests and brought down the Rossen Zhelyazkov government – the 52nd National Assembly adopted another version of the 2026 Budget at first reading on July 15.
This package has also come under harsh criticism from various quarters, including the central bank, economists, private sector bodies and trade unions, for its high deficit target and lack of reforms.
The government of Prime Minister Roumen Radev has defended its draft package as the only possible, arguing that there was little time left this year to pursue drastic policy changes, while blaming the high deficit as the consequence of policies put in place under previous administrations.
The 5.7 per cent Budget deficit in the Budget will breach EU fiscal rules by a wide margin, but Bulgaria was already set to be subject of an excessive deficit procedure based on last year’s Budget deficit, as recommended by the European Commission last month and formally confirmed by EU finance ministers last week.
In its medium-term macroeconomic forecast, approved as part of the Budget package on July 1, the Cabinet has projected the Budget deficit declining to 3.8 per cent of GDP in 2027 and the EU-mandated three per cent in 2028.
The Budget package envisions a consolidated fiscal programme with revenues of 49.62 billion euro, boosted by an increase in EU funds, and 56.81 billion euro in spending. By comparison, last year’s Zhelyazkov government Budget draft had revenues of 51.44 billion euro and 55.09 billion euro in spending.
The 2026 Budget macroeconomic framework sets an economic growth target of 2.6 per cent, slightly higher than the European Commission’s 2.5 per cent projection made in this year’s spring forecast.
The 2026 State Budget Act was adopted with 143 votes in favour, mainly from Radev’s ruling Progressive Bulgaria and opposition Movement for Rights and Freedoms, and 81 opposed. The complementary health care insurance and social security budgets, part of the 2026 Budget package, were adopted by Parliament last week.
(Photo: parliament.bg)
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