If they are compared to salaries in the States and Germany, then yes, they certainly are. As a share of GDP, we spend the most on salaries in the Ministry of Interior. This was stated by the chairman of the AIKB Vasil Velev on the air of the morning block of BNT.
According to Velev, these outrageously higher salaries in the Ministry of Interior system and in the security sector compared to productivity and GDP are taken from everyone. "We have 3 times higher salaries in the "Security" sector - a captain cannot receive a salary 3 times higher than 1 engineer who earns his salary", Velev was indignant, after the chief economist of the "Podkrepa" CT Atanas Katsarchev objected. "Someone continues to hide income", he replied to Velev.
It's as if we have the highest salaries and are increasing them, Katsarchev also said, and Velev immediately opposed - we are talking about the budget sphere (state salaries), in the private sector it is not like that. "We are draining the real sector and pouring it into the budget sector", said the chairman of AIKB. 586,000 people receive salaries from the budget - with a decreasing population, the administration is growing, Velev added.
An interesting emphasis in Velev's words - there were no innocents, but he explicitly highlighted the unions and Assen Vassilev, after which he pointed out that "some deputies" abstained from voting in parliament on the legal changes, which are now the basis for the planned increase in salaries in the Ministry of Interior. The abstainers were the deputies from the PP-DB:
"We have been spending beyond our means for 4 years now", complained Velev. It's as if I were cutting my children's support like a father - who is to blame, them or whoever doesn't earn enough, Katsarchev replied. The salary base is low, he added. "Let's only talk about economic policy, and not stare at who gets how much as a salary, because we don't get enough", Katsarchev was categorical.
The two of them and Velev also argued about how our trade balance has been negative for years and "everything should have gone bankrupt", but it hasn't. Yes, but now the budget balance is minus 3%, the trade balance is over 11 billion leva - in Romania they froze all salaries and pensions, in Greece it happened some time ago. "Those who are guilty are now throwing dust and using the unions", said Velev. "What awaits us if we have the wrong policy - tax and social security policy, the rich do not pay, everything is on the backs of the lowest-income earners", replied Katsarov.
Velev was categorical - 20% VAT for everyone, no preferences like for restaurateurs. "A big mistake" - that's what he said about the promise of Borisov and company to the restaurant industry.