"Strasbourg Calling" Bulgarian MEPs Nikola Minchev and Andrey Novakov – between the institution and people's problems

The EP plans on the next "long-term" budget of the EU

Andrey Novakov, Irina Nedeva, Nikola Minchev (from left to right) in the EP radio studios in Strasbourg

Photo: Rositsa Petkova

“In the European Parliament, the word ‘compromise’ does not necessarily carry a negative meaning. Compromise refers to finding common ground in a highly fragmented environment. There's a difference in the culture, the rhetoric of communication. In the Bulgarian parliament, the level of communication is far below even the domestic level.”

This comparison was made in an interview for the Bulgarian National Radio by Nikola Minchev, MEP from the Renew Europe group (We Continue the Change), previously

Speaker of the Bulgarian Parliament.

Nikola Minchev Photo: European Parliament

According to him, increasing defense spending is necessary and inevitable.

“Investments in defense are meant to ensure long-term peace. The EU must have the ability to defend itself.”

Minchev, who is vice-chair of the Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection in the European Parliament, also commented on overregulation:

“Overregulation is an obstacle. Reasonable regulation is not a problem. The European market is being flooded with cheap imported products, mainly from China. This hurts local European producers. Overregulation is an issue – the EU has gone too far in this direction, and now there is talk of simplification.”

Andrey Novakov, MEP from the European People’s Party/GERB, stated for the Bulgarian National Radio from Strasbourg:

“In the European Parliament, we vote on things that will define Bulgaria’s future for the next 50 years. We cannot afford to use a language that distances people from European institutions.”

Novakov is a member of the Committees on Security and Defence, Regional Development, and Transport and Tourism.

MEP Andrey Novakov: Bulgaria must receive targeted defense funding

“What I’m advocating for is that every euro coming from the EU budget should be directed toward the specific problems bothering people. Otherwise, they think we’re dealing with nonsense—and unfortunately, in some cases, they’re right.”

According to Novakov, defense financing in Europe will be done through debt. He opposes the idea of "redirecting money originally intended for building schools, water systems, and roads toward missile systems".

“Cohesion policy should not be reformatted. There's a reason it is long-term. Some projects can’t be tied to short-term goals.”

Regarding green policies, Andrey Novakov stated:

“I believe in the market. People know better than MEPs how to spend their money. If someone wants to buy a gasoline-powered car, they probably have a reason to do so. Look at what happened in Spain, where 80% of electricity is generated from solar panels. What do you do then? Yes, we encourage people to buy electric vehicles with bonuses – but should we bad everything else? Why?”

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Photos: Rositsa Petkova, European Parliament, BTA

English version and publication: Rositsa Petkova

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A live studio from the European Parliament with BNR's Irina Nedeva

"Strasbourg Calling" Bulgarian MEPs Nikola Minchev and Andrey Novakov – between the institution and people's problems

The EP plans on the next "long-term" budget of the EU

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