Rumen Radev's cabinet will face economic trouble in the coming months, Prof Svetoslav Malinov, head of the political science department at Sofia University, said in a radio interview. He said the expected rise in energy prices after New Year could push up prices, cut consumption and cause problems on the job market.
The biggest test for the government will be the real effects of the budget and of the international economic situation, Malinov said. He named them as the main risks for the cabinet.
There is no open discussion of higher prices for gas, heating and other energy, the political analyst said. If the issue were raised in public, people would be better prepared for the price shock, he said.
Malinov also questioned the figures in the budget. He asked how consumption can grow if incomes lag behind inflation. He also rejected the idea that Bulgaria can become an economic miracle while wages rise more slowly than prices.
It is too early to draw firm conclusions from the presidential election results, Malinov said. They are too recent to speak of a long-term realignment of the parties, and the parties keep much of their support.
The opposition still has no joint alternative that is clear and convincing, he said. Pushing for immediate snap parliamentary elections is unwise, he said. Instead, it should criticise the budget and the cabinet's actions and offer clear solutions.
The analyst also commented on the possibility that Andrey Gyurov could lead the unification of pro-European and pro-Atlantic voters. Malinov said Gyurov's result is political capital that no party would want to waste, and it should not be left without a follow-up. For now, Gyurov has no natural institutional position from which to develop it.