Parliament's budget and finance committee has approved the ratification of a memorandum under which Bulgaria will get €119.25m from the European Economic Area (EEA) Financial Mechanism 2021-2028. Seventeen MPs voted for the bill, one voted against and none abstained.

The memorandum is between Bulgaria and the three donor states: Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway. After the donors' management and other costs are deducted, Bulgaria keeps a net €110.9m. The mechanism runs from May 2021 to April 2028.

At the start of the meeting, Ivan Ivanov, head of the Central Coordination Unit at the Council of Ministers, said this is the second memorandum under the scheme. He explained that the donors use it to help EU states narrow economic and social gaps. It also aims to improve relations between Bulgaria and the donor states.

The first, under the Norwegian mechanism, is with Norway. Parliament approved it earlier this year.

The aid covers three areas: the European green transition. Democracy, the rule of law and human rights. And social inclusion and sustainability. The "Energy Security" programme gets €25m from the donors and €4.4m in national co-funding. The money is for renewable energy communities, energy security and links in the Black Sea region, carbon dioxide capture and storage, and other projects.

The "Water Resources Sustainability" programme has €26.5m plus €4.6m in co-funding. The money will pay for a research ship to be bought and put into service, and part of it is for environmental monitoring around the Black Sea. "Culture" is set to get €14.8m and €2.6m in national funding.

"Local Development" gets the most: €40.3m plus €7.1m in co-funding. The programme is for good governance in municipalities, the inclusion of Roma and the fight against discrimination, and for education, training and jobs. It also includes scholarships for Roma students.

Dimo Drenchev of Vazrazhdane asked whether the scholarships really help young Roma find work. Ivanov replied that the data could be requested and provided later.

Temenuzhka Petkova of GERB-SDS proposed that the committee be shown the parameters of the 2027 budget plan, which goes to the European Commission and the Eurogroup. The committee rejected the proposal. Venko Sabrutev of We Continue the Change asked for a re-vote, but the result was the same: 7 votes for, 12 abstentions and none against. Sabrutev insisted that the finance minister be invited to the committee to present the plan.

Committee chair Konstantin Prodanov of Progressive Bulgaria said no specific parameters of the draft budget can be given now, because the committee does not have them either and the deadline is too short. He promised more information on the 2027 plan in the first week of November.