Bulgarian media figure Borislav Banev has passed away, prompting tributes from colleagues across the entertainment journalism community. The Razgrad native built his career at prominent lifestyle publications, serving as MM TV news presenter and holding editorial positions at Egoist, EGO, and Vice before transitioning into photography and cultural criticism for Boyscout portal.
Associates remembered him as a passionate advocate for classic rock who maintained encyclopedic knowledge of music history, hosting podcasts exploring adolescent nostalgia and fleeting contemporary trends. Services will take place at Sofia's Saints Cyril and Methodius church on Tsaritsa Eleonora Street in the Buxton neighborhood, according to former Duma editor...
Opposition politician Nikolay Denkov has announced parliamentary blockades targeting budget committee sessions, warning that fiscal policies will trigger mass economic unrest across Bulgaria. The PP-DB representative told state radio that the spending blueprint imposes unprecedented tax increases while accumulating 60 million leva in daily debt obligations, hitting private enterprise particularly hard despite massive allocations to already well-compensated sectors.
Denkov condemned what he characterized as forced procedural shortcuts limiting amendment opportunities, arguing that authorities are repeating governance patterns visible in the Varna mayor detention saga. He predicted international liability costs when courts eventually...
Bulgaria's governing coalition has backed the retention of Blagomir Kotsev as Varna mayor despite his legal troubles, with GERB lawmaker Vladislav Goranov asserting only courts should determine his removal. The stance follows pressure on local electoral commissioners to strip Kotsev of authority while he faces prosecution, though the Supreme Court of Cassation recently ruled on procedural matters in his case.
Opposition faction PP-DB accused authorities of deflecting accountability to institutions that allegedly detained the mayor improperly for five months. Coalition partner BSP-United Left declined to instruct its representatives on the commission, allowing them to vote based on individual assessment. PP-DB deputy Nikolay Denkov...
Former finance chief Milen Velchev has warned that Bulgaria faces spiraling debt as government expenditures outpace revenues while politicians dodge essential reforms to preserve electoral support. The ex-minister told Bulgaria ON AIR that budget architects fear backlash from cost-containment measures despite dangerous fiscal trajectories.
Velchev highlighted paradoxical public sector expansion amid population decline, noting that state workforce growth threatens to reach absurd proportions relative to private employment. While dismissing the doubled dividend tax from five to ten percent as financially modest, he cautioned that the shift signals a willingness to pursue broader levies that could deter investment and business confidence...
Bulgarian opposition lawmaker Petar Petrov has accused the government of neglecting critically ill children while funneling over 1.4 billion leva into the National Health Insurance Fund budget. The Vazrazhdane party representative condemned authorities for maintaining static allocations of 84 million leva for pediatric serious illness care despite the massive spending increase, suggesting funds designated for COVID vaccines should be redirected instead.
Petrov warned that hospital corruption will consume the additional 400 million leva earmarked for clinical facilities through inflated equipment costs and fraudulent billing schemes. He challenged projected revenue targets of 448 million leva beyond standard insurance contributions...
Bulgarian trade union leader Dimitar Manolov of the Podkrepa confederation has criticized the proposed 2026 budget as inequitable, warning that labor actions will escalate if worker demands go unmet. Employees from the National Social Insurance Institute and National Statistical Institute staged walkouts demanding pay raises, while the agriculture, forestry, and healthcare sectors plan demonstrations.
Manolov highlighted stark salary disparities, noting that compensation for identical roles across Bulgaria's 302 central administrative bodies varies by up to five times. He condemned outsized pay packages for fiscal oversight bodies and pointed to structural funding inefficiencies where social security contributions merely circulate...
Bulgarian territories show widening disparities in prosperity indicators, with Sofia, Varna, Plovdiv, Burgas and Gabrovo leading economic performance through concentrated industrial development. Economist Petar Ganev from the Institute for Market Economy confirmed capital influence extends across dozens of surrounding municipalities, while secondary hubs affect far fewer neighboring areas.
Poverty rates exceed one-fifth of the national population, with Silistra, Pazardzhik, Vidin, Razgrad and Sliven experiencing particularly severe conditions where approximately 35 percent of residents fall below subsistence thresholds. Kardzhali, Montana, Vidin and Silistra occupy the bottom tier of the assessment tracking infrastructure quality...
Bulgarian Socialist Party legislator Atanas Atanasov confirmed his party possesses multiple viable presidential contenders spanning different generations, citing Vice President Iliyana Yotova as one prominent option alongside National Assembly figures Natalia Kiselova, Yanaki Stoilov and Krum Zarkov. The lawmaker emphasized his coalition's record of successfully fielding executive candidates while declining to endorse specific individuals publicly.
Atanasov defended the governing coalition's stability amid eurozone accession preparations and regional geopolitical uncertainty, characterizing the proposed budget as worker-focused legislation that prioritizes families. He justified mandatory social security contribution increases as...
Bulgarian infectious disease expert Georgi Popov expects influenza activity to begin several weeks ahead of typical seasonal patterns, with peak transmission anticipated during February. Indicator viruses such as rhinovirus and respiratory syncytial virus currently circulate through the population before full-scale flu emergence, mirroring trends observed across South America and Australia, where cases surfaced three to four weeks earlier than usual.
Popov recommended immediate vaccination for elderly citizens over 65, young children and pregnant women, noting that antibody development requires up to two weeks following inoculation. Coronavirus continues circulating as a milder variant producing throat pain and coughing without...
