October 3, 2008

The National Assembly adopted, at first reading, amendments to the State Financial Inspection Act. The changes proposed by the Council of Ministers provide for equal access to information to financial auditors send by the EU Commission under the same conditions as for the Bulgarian one. The changes foresee the possibility financial reports from the audits conducted by the European controllers to be used in court as proof in administrative or penal proceedings.

The changes aim at ensuring assistance to European officials in cases when certain organizations or individuals using European funds refuse to let them perform the audit. They will be helped by the Agency for State Financial Inspection which also oversees the use of EU funds.

The State Agency for Financial Inspection will be authorized to collect forcefully information and evidence. Its agents will have the right to search premises and seize documents and evidence from entities and individuals after court approval and with the assistance of the Ministry of Interior.

MPs passed at second reading the changes in the Hunting and Game Preservation Act. The state hunting industries will be able to contract with private legal entities their common use following a bidding procedure. The term of the contracts won’t exceed 15 years.
Parliament approved at first reading two bills regarding the access to public information moved by the chairman of the parliamentary Committee against corruption Boyko Velikov and a group of MPS as well as another one submitted by Martin Dimitrov.

At Question time Prime Minister Sergey Stanishev and Deputy Prime Minister Meglena Plugchieva answered questions of members of parliament.