Ahead of Bulgaria's October 2007 report to the EU on its progress in judicial reform, Interior Minister Rumen Petkov presented his report on the first half of his term in office on Sunday September 16.

"You would understand that, if at a Ministry like the Interior, 80% of the budget goes to salaries and social securities, the rest has to be done by magic," Petkov said.

According to the report that Petkov presented, Bulgaria would rank as an average country among other EU countries when it comes to crime. Measured against a population of 100 000, with 1776 cases, Bulgaria's crime rate was about a quarter of that of a country like Germany, Petkov said.

Crime numbers on the decline, according to the report by the Interior Ministry, were the numbers of cases of rape, child murder, robbery, extortion and theft, while there is a rise in the number of cases of arson, traffic related injuries and deaths, and drug-related crimes.

In 2006 the Interior Ministry and Customs collectively confiscated about 5 times more drugs when compared to 2002.

The trend in premeditated murders had continued its steady decline over the past 2 years, with figures for 2006 showing that some 78 per cent of registered premeditated murder cases had been solved.

Petkov called the zero tolerance policy in the fight against corruption "successful" and said it would be continued. To underline this, Petkov pointed out that 25 staff of different services had been fired for corruption and against 11 disciplinary actions have been taken.

After years of suggestions that Bulgaria was not going to join the EU because of the poor work of the Interior Ministry, followed by suggestions that Bulgaria would join the EU but under special conditions because of the poor work of the Interior Ministry, Petkov said "I am not impressed, nor surprised with the fact that all those who made these suggestions, do not find a single word to thank those at the Interior Ministry, who work in a situation that is material-technically degrading," Petkov said.

Petkov also said that it was clear to him that his administration did not live up to the expectations of Bulgarians.
The work of regional inspectors was not up to standards, he said.

Petkov set time aside for the presentation of the new uniforms of the police.
A competition for the production of the new uniforms still has to be announced.