The proposed amendments to Bulgaria’s Constitution failed to get enough votes at first reading. 161 MPs voted in favour. In order to change the Constitution, 180 votes are needed. "The amendments were not adopted, but since more than 160 MPs voted in favour, a first reading vote can be held once more, no earlier than two months from today", National Assembly Speaker Rosen Zhelyazkov said.
The proposed changes were submitted by GERB-SDS, We Continue the Change-Democratic Bulgaria and the Movement for Rights and Freedoms. They envisaged a structural reform of the Supreme Judicial Council. According to the proposed amendments, the caretaker Premier shall be appointed amongst the President of the National Assembly, the President of the Constitutional Court or the Governor of the Bulgarian National Bank. There was also a proposal to change Bulgaria’s national day from March 3 (on this date in 1878, the Peace Treaty of San Stefano was signed, which put an end to the Russo-Turkish war of 1877-1878 and marked the re-establishment of Bulgaria as a sovereign state) to May 24- the Day of the Bulgarian language, education and culture, and of the Cyrillic alphabet. According to the proposed amendments, people with dual citizenship could also be elected as MPs and ministers. The Bulgarian Socialist Party, "There is Such a People" and "Vazrazhdane" strongly criticized the proposed changes. According to them, they will not solve the problems in the judicial system.
Foreign Minister Georg Georgiev has met with ambassadors and diplomats from EU Member States, the US, Canada, the UK and Switzerland in Bulgaria. The diplomats were briefed in detail on the increasing trends of institutional..
A concession will be granted for the Port of Varna, which is an opportunity for investments worth hundreds of millions, Deputy Prime Minister Grozdan Karadzhov told the Parliamentary Committee on Transport and Communications, as quoted by..
Ferry operations near Oryahovo have been suspended d ue to low water levels in the Danube River. The situation is not unprecedented and occurs every summer, but this year the water level has dropped earlier than usual, said the Oryahovo-Bechet Ferry..
A new lane for heavy trucks over 12 tons will be opened at the Danube Bridge in Ruse, announced Ruse Regional Governor Dragomir Draganov. The initiative..
Gorna Oryahovitsa is the largest non-district town in Northern Bulgaria. It is located near Bulgaria’s old capital, Veliko Tarnovo, and is an important..
On July 7, the Bulgarian National Bank (BNB) puts into circulation a silver commemorative coin titled "175 Years Since the Birth of Ivan Vazov", BNB..
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