Bulgaria extends extraordinary pandemic situation, slaps fines on top officials for failing to wear face masks

By bne IntelliNews June 24, 2020

Bulgaria’s Health Minister Kiril Ananiev said on June 24 that the extraordinary epidemic situation has been extended by two more weeks, to July 15, due to the constantly rising number of new cases of coronavirus (COVID-19).

In the past two weeks, the average daily number of newly-confirmed coronavirus cases was 84, which is 3.2 times higher compared to the previous two weeks, Ananiev explained.

For the moment the government does not plan to tighten the restrictions but will watch more cautiously for their implementation.

“We shall increase significantly the control, the measures must be implemented,” Ananiev said at a press conference, live broadcasted by local TV channels.

Meanwhile, the authorities will impose a BGN300 (€153.4) fine on Prime Minister Boyko Borissov as he was not wearing a face mask during a visit to the Rila monastery. The same fine will be imposed on all reporters and priests who were also without face masks during the visit.

The authorities will track down MPs who attended parliament sessions without face masks and fine them too, Dnevnik news outlet reported.

Related Articles

bne IntelliNews Southeast Europe Outlook 2024

This Southeast Europe Outlook 2024 has been prepared by bne IntelliNews as part of a series of annual reviews providing updates on the geopolitical, macroeconomic and commercial state of ... more

EBRD 2023: EBRD, EU and ILX to co-operate to boost private-sector finance in Emerging Europe

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), the European Union, and ILX Management, an emerging market asset manager, have joined forces to enhance private-sector finance in Emerging ... more

EU ban on Russian LNG could backfire

Momentum is building behind calls for the EU to impose a ban on Russian LNG, even though doing so could make it harder for the bloc to stock up on gas supplies before next winter. The EU has ... more

Dismiss