Bulgaria’s Population In For Long-Term Drop and Ageing, Social Policy Ministry SaysSofia, March 27 (BTA)

Bulgaria’s population will decrease and age in the long term, said Dimiter Dimitrov, Deputy Minister of Labour and Social Policy.

Talking at Monday’s discussion on the pension system’s independence and stability, Dimitrov said the non-working-age population would account for about 30 per cent of Bulgarians in 2025 and 38 to 40 per cent in 2050. In 2005, 25 per cent of Bulgarians were pensioners, according to the Ministry’s figures. Dimitrov concluded that the burden on people with jobs would increase in the long term.

Hristina Hristova MEP, former minister of labour and social policy, said mechanisms were needed to mitigate the financial consequences of population ageing for young people.

Lalko Doulevski, Chairman of the Economic and Social Council, said the grey economy caused annual losses ranging between 700 and 1,000 million leva in unpaid taxes and social insurance contributions. The pension fund alone sustains losses of about 600 million leva.

Totyu Mladenov, Executive Director of the Chief Labour Inspectorate, said rigorous registration should be introduced for fixed-term contracts. About 30 per cent of construction workers are employed under fixed-term contracts without health insurance. Moreover, these workers often refuse to cooperate with the controlling bodies, Mladenov said.

After the discussion, Member of the European Parliament and former Social Policy Minister Lidya Shouleva told journalists that by the end of the year she will table the legislative motion for part of the taxes paid by people born before 1960 to be paid for additional pension into a private pension fund. The objective is to eradicate inequality between those born after 1960 and before that date.

According to Shouleva, this „tax investment“ should be combined with the payment of a similar sum on the aprt of employers, too, with the latter being exempt of corporate tax. Thus pensioners born after 1960 will be able to receive between 80 and 100 leva as additional pension.

BTA