The ruling majority in parliament endorsed a 900 million leva budget surplus spending, to be spent at the discretion of the government. Alongside with the 300 million leva regular budget, the sum of 1.2 billion leva represented an all-time high cabinet allowance for the past 18 years of transition, mediapool.bg reported on November 30.

MPs passed the decision with the opposition voting against. The head of the parliamentary economic committee, Yordan Tsonev, requested the sum to proceed with important infrastructure projects. He said the Audit Chamber would be the pertinent watchdog on spending expediency.

The MPs from the Union of Democratic Forces (UDF) said that 70 per cent of the money has already been spent but the money has not been paid.

Tsonev said the funds would be allocated for the construction of roads, railways, environment and other types of infrastructure, alongside the underground in Sofia. The funds would also be used to fulfil commitments under the Energy and Telecommunications chapters in Bulgaria's pre-accession treaty, as well as for the endorsement of temporary interest-free loans for municipalities, for the financing of expenditures under EU-financed projects and programmes.

Until May 31 next year, Finance Minister will have to transfer additional money to the State Pension System Guarantee Fund as well as the sum from the surplus, which surpasses three per cent of the Gross Domestic Product.

According to preliminary calculations, the surplus will surpass 3.6 per cent of GDP, which means that the Pension System Guarantee Fund will have 0.6 per cent of GDP inflow or about 150 million leva.

Deputy Finance Minister Liubomir Datsov told journalists in parliament that about 50 million leva of the one billion leva in allowed spending would go for the creation of the so-called single emergency number 112, which should have been operational in the entire country already.