Several thousand people gathered outside the Bulgarian parliament in the capital Sofia on Wednesday to protest the 2026 budget proposal. According to the demonstrators, this is an attempt to mask widespread corruption in the country. TASR informs about it according to the report of the AFP agency.
- Demonstrators in Sofia protested against the draft Bulgarian budget for 2026.
- The assembly surrounded the parliament to prevent the lawmakers from leaving.
- Protesters criticized corruption and measures such as tax and wage increases.
- The demonstration was organized by the pro-European alliance, and was supported by other groups.
- The Bulgarian budget for 2026 will be calculated in European currency.
Protesters surrounded the parliament building in Sofia to prevent lawmakers from leaving. They called on the “mafia” politicians to resign while holding placards with the inscription “Not a dodgy business”. The proposal, which has sparked a wave of backlash, includes tax increases and public sector pay rises, although critics say the institutions managing Bulgaria’s public finances are so corrupt that these measures will only consolidate the corruption.
Although the demonstration was organized by the pro-European alliance CC/BD, it allegedly also received the support of far-right and pro-Russian movements, the French agency writes. Parliament is expected to approve the proposal in the first week of December. As Bulgaria joins the Eurozone on January 1, the budget will be the country’s first budget calculated in the European currency.
When presenting the proposal, the Bulgarian government insisted that its “priority” was to “ensure the long-term sustainability of public finances” in the European Union’s poorest country. According to Transparency International’s corruption perception index, Bulgaria, together with Hungary and Romania, is among the most corrupt EU member states.
