Bulgaria MPs Decide to Freeze Own Salaries

The project to freeze the Bulgarian MPs salaries was passed with 143 “yes” votes and the wages will not be recalculated until December 31, 2010. Photo by BGNES

The Members of the Bulgarian Parliament passed Wednesday the decision to halt the procedure to update their salaries and to freeze the current wages.

The project was passed with 143 “yes” votes and the salaries will not be recalculated until December 31, 2010.

When presenting the proposal to not increase MPs' pay, the Speaker, Tsetska Tsacheva, said the alternative would compromise the prestige of the Bulgarian Parliament and reminded her colleagues that just BGN 37 a month are at stake.

“Is this what we need to do in times of crisis? Please back the salary freeze because the opposite discredited us so much before the Bulgarian people that we should not even hold this more than hour-long debate. Let's vote today,” Tsacheva appealed to the MPs.

Georgi Pirinski, from the opposition Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP) and former Speaker proposed to call Finance Minister, Simeon Djankov, Thursday for a hearing about the cabinet's measures regarding pay. The proposal was approved.

Ivan Kostov, leader of the right-wing Democrats for Strong Bulgaria (DSB) party voiced firm opposition to the freeze, saying it is nothing more than a populist move and the problem needs full solution through structural and personal changes and layoffs in the State Administration and the high-levels of the executive and legislative power.

The ethnic Turkish Movement for Rights and Freedoms (DPS) party pointed out the recalculation and the updating of the MPs' salaries is regulated by the Parliament's Code and they doubt the Wednesday decision can change the Code.

On the other hand side, if the salaries in the public sector go down, the freeze would mean the MPs' pay will not be reduced.

On March 4, Tsacheva publicly confirmed the new levels of salaries to be received by MPs and officials and justified the increase. A day later, Bulgaria’s Prime Minister, Boyko Borisov, said such increase is unacceptable in times of economic crisis.

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