A dispute has arisen in Parliament concerning a veterinary law to deal with the problem of stray dogs in Bulgaria. Members of Parliament and animal protection organisations cannot reach an agreement. Politicians commented that a failure in finding solution might pose problems to Bulgaria's entry into the EU. A decision needs to be made as to whether stray dogs should initially be put down to reduce their population. Once this had been done, and European standards met, stray dogs would undergo castration. The new law does not state clearly whether a public institution would carry out the procedures or if private veterinary clinics would be involved. Members of parliament said that such ambiguities could lead to corruption.
The veterinary law also envisages measures on other issues. Food safety would be the responsibility of producers, and not food distributors and sellers. An information system would follow the movement of animal products through the country. European standards would be imposed on veterinary care clinics. (Trud)