Klisurski: Bulgaria May Request 1.1 Billion Euros from the RRF if the National Assembly Passes Law

There is a possibility for Bulgaria to request almost 200 million euros more for the fourth payment under the Recovery and Resilience Plan (RRP) - i.e. instead of 900 million euros, 1 billion and 100 million euros could be requested. This was said by the caretaker Finance Minister Georgi Klysurki in "The Interview" on BNT.

Georgi Klysurki, caretaker Minister of Finance: "Deputy Prime Minister Nedina and the government are in intensive negotiations with the European Commission and since Minister Yankulov submitted for review a new law for the restoration of the Anti-Corruption Commission, the European Commission is inclined to transfer these 200 million euros, which were withheld from the second payment for the Anti-Corruption Commission, to be transferred as a possible sum in the fourth payment and if the 52nd National Assembly adopts this bill, which Minister Yankulov will submit, then in fact the entire amount of the fourth payment can even be 1 billion and 100 million euros."

According to Klysurki, the initially announced deadline by the caretaker cabinet for the new National Assembly to re-establish an anti-corruption body on May 8th may be extended until the end of May. In other words, it depends on the new National Assembly what part of the money under the RRP will be saved, the minister added.

Georgi Klysurki explained the proposal to transfer 1 billion and 400 million euros from the Bulgarian Development Bank back to the budget, because apparently, the bank has no concept for how to use these funds. The process of reducing the capital requires technological time, he added.

Georgi Klysurki, caretaker Minister of Finance: "Accordingly, the state can assess, increase or decrease the bank's capital, as it deems fit. By the way, even after the current reduction of the BDB's capital, it will still have twice the capital it had at this time last year. So we are leaving the BDB for development in an extremely good liquid state and, despite this, we manage to secure 1 billion and 400 million leva again for the state budget."

Regarding the cabinet's measures against high prices, Klysurki defined them as effective.

Georgi Klysurki, caretaker Minister of Finance: "The aid that we already paid in April of 20 euros for the most needy individuals, I think, is an effective measure, as it manages to compensate individuals... if they refuel, for example, up to 100 liters per month, compared to the prices that were before March, they could refuel about the same quantity now. In fact, these 20 euros are 13-14 liters of gasoline. Exactly, yes. And the good thing, in my opinion, which is also important to say, is that this aid is directed only to the most needy."

See the whole conversation in the video