site.btaNo-confidence Vote is Not Related to Budget Implementation, but to Successful Accession Eurozone, Says Finance Minister Petkova

During a parliamentary debate on a no-confidence vote against the government for failure in the area of fiscal policy, Finance Minister Temenuzhka Petkova argued that the no-confidence motion is not related to the implementation of the budget as of May 31 but is rather prompted by Bulgaria's successful path to eurozone accession.

"Bulgaria covered absolutely and honestly all the criteria related to our eurozone membership, and very soon, in just a few days, we will finalize the process of adopting Bulgaria to the euro area from January 1, 2026," said Petkova. Bulgaria will take its worthy place in the heart of Europe, she added, and has called for support for the government.

The Minister of Finance argued that the reasons for the no-confidence vote are unfounded. The revenue in the budget for 2025 has been ambitious, but over the last four years the ambition in spending has been huge, she added, explaining that the ambition in revenue was dictated by ambition in expenses that are legally regulated.

The National Revenue Agency and the Customs Agency are working purposefully to fulfill the revenue set in the budget for 2025, said Petkova. She called on those who are skeptical about the collection of revenue, not to rush to gloom, because the efforts that institutions make are really for the good of the country.

Budget revenue increased by BGN 3.2 billion or 11.5% compared to the same period last year, with tax revenue being the largest share, Petkova said. The expenditures were BGN 34.1 billion, with an increase compared to the same period last year by BGN 4.8 billion or 16.4%. The budget balance as of May 31, 2025 was negative and amounted to BGN 2.6 billion - 1.2% of the gross domestic product with a budget deficit of 3%, she said.

Regarding the comments that for the same period last year the budget of 2024 was in surplus, Petkova said that this surplus was the result that projects under the Recovery and Resilience Plan were not implemented