Before the first government-forming mandate - were names of ministers discussed?

A significant day for the negotiations between the first and second largest parliamentary forces and the possibility of forming a regular cabinet. Names for the line-up of “We Continue the Change-Democratic Bulgaria” (WCC-DB) proposed government appeared in the media and the comments were not late.

The names of WCC-DB as part of a future cabinet leaked in the public space are about to blow up the fragile dialogue with GERB-UDF. According to the reports, WCC-DB intended to nominate Acad. Nikolai Denkov as Prime Minister, WCC co-leader Kiril Petkov (former PM) as Deputy Prime Minister, WCC co-leader Assen Vassilev as Finance Minister, and DB co-leader Atanas Atanassov as Minister of Interior.

So far, however, the comments are laconic.

For his part, GERB-UDF leader Boyko Borissov said he was not interested in names, but rather in the country's governance programme.

"I never comment on rumours or writings or information from the media. Most likely it is an internally controlled leaking of names in order to check how they will be accepted. This thing has not been presented to us... I think that WCC-DB see that there is no one more prepared than me for prime minister, but I pulled myself out of the front row, I stepped aside to increase the chances of forming a government, and I think that was the right thing to do. In my opinion, both Kiril Petkov and Assen Vassilev should do the same and step aside, so that Bulgaria can have a cabinet of experts, based on the programme, based on responsibility, to govern for four years," said Boyko Borissov, leader of GERB-UDF.

“If Petkov and Vassilev take part in a government, we will propose iconic figures from our coalition,” he said.

Any names floating around currently in regard to a government were just rumours, Kiril Petkov of WCC-DB said.

“Until next Tuesday (May 2), any names you will hear are just rumours. We are currently in the process of making political decisions with all the bodies of our parties in our coalition. This process will not end by next Tuesday. Until then, we will not deal with any rumours, any names, and we won’t conform to other people’s schedules,” said Petkov.

Daniel Lorer of WCC-DB declined to comment on rumours and said that names were not discussed in the coalition.

"Of course, we are discussing in the coalition both the legislative programme and the governance programme. The names are entirely rumours and therefore I will not comment on them at all. We have not yet discussed names in the coalition, thank you," said Daniel Lorer of WCC-DB.

On the other important topic for the state - the 2023 state budget, GERB-UDF resented why WCC-DB want the caretaker cabinet to make a new plan-account of the state. According to Boyko Borissov, this is running away from responsibility. The second largest political force, on the other hand, insists on having a new budget in order to prevent populism based on the old macro-framework if it comes up for discussion in the plenary chamber. Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP) said that for them it did not matter whether the current budget of the caretaker cabinet would be looked at or a new one would be made. What is important is that the future budget plan includes social spending.

"The biggest problem of this darft budget is the huge deficit and debt, which is set there, and it still could have been bigger as the initial budget forecast for the next three years of the Ministry of Finance was for 15 billion. 15 billion against 12 does not sound so bad, but the amount is huge. There is another reason, because for the last six years the state has set a deficit, which has been much smaller in the past," said Kostadin Kostadinov, leader of "Vazrazhdane".

"This draft budget will enter Parliament today for sure. We have two ways out - either we accept it at the first reading and between the first and second we look for a way to correct it as we understand politics. We insist on social policy because of the 30% below the poverty line," said Kornelia Ninova, leader of the BSP.

"I heard that the Finance Ministry has prepared two versions of the draft budget, one with 3% deficit and one with over 6%. Please ask caretaker Minister of Finance, Rositsa Velkova, whether there was a prepared version with 3% and why they are submitting the other one. In my opinion, we have proved what is happening with this budget, which only scares the Bulgarian citizens, but if the one with more than 6% deficit is tabled, it will be used by different floating majorities to push through policies that are not in the interest of the Bulgarian citizens," said Nastimir Ananiev from WCC-DB.

Images by Dessislava Kulelieva (BNT) and by BTA