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Soon it will be 8 years since the last constitutional changes related to the Bulgarian judiciary. As politicians are evidently in a hurry to present us with a Christmas gift in the form of new amendments to the Fundamental Law, perhaps it is a good idea to recall what happened in 2015, highlight the differences with the current situation, and suggest why there is such a lack of enthusiasm for the current initiative.

Bulgaria’s Мinistry of Finance recently published the \'tax package\' for 2024, including proposed changes to all tax laws. Alongside widely discussed cases such as the return of the standard VAT rate for restaurants and bread and non-payment of bills in case of an undeclared cash receipt, the package also includes perhaps the deepest change in business taxation in our country in over 15 years.

Total management collapse, poor infrastructure, shameful results, and alienation of fans from the stadium, now even aided by water cannons. The agony of Bulgarian football has reached an incomprehensible low. An appointed match for the national team with empty stands, fights outside the stadium, and a middle finger for farewell seem to mark the end of the team in the Bulgarian Football Union (BFU).

We are pleased to announce that the next edition of the event will be held on October 18-20, 2024, in Lodz, Poland, and the accompanying slogan will be “City. Europe. Future”! Most Poles – like most Europeans and most of the world’s population – live in cities.

Demography, fewer and fewer children being born, population decline, aging society, migration, crisis; when we talk about demography in the European Union today, these are the primary factors we think about. We hear it a lot, but how big is the real \"crisis\"?

Children\'s rights are a matter of the utmost importance for politics and the future of the democratic system. Unfortunately, this statement still remains merely aspirational in Poland. The discourse and practices in the political sphere do not indicate that the decision-making circles (esp. the legislative and executive branches) are aware of the connection between children\'s rights and the quality of political life.

The complexity of the advance payment of corporate income tax (CIT) creates administrative burdens for businesses and hinders the path to greater competitiveness. To ensure the stability of the state budget and higher tax revenue collection, the CIT regime was complemented by an advance CIT in the early years of the restoration of Lithuania\'s independence. Companies pay it before profits are earned, thus crediting the State.

Even before the war, crossing Ukraine\'s border with the EU was not a pleasant experience for tourists and businesses. The war has intensified the problems, as the western land border has become a bottleneck for passengers and cargo. As a result, queues at the border and related infrastructure problems remain a challenge for Ukraine and its western neighbors.

The Lithuanian Parliament rejected the president\'s proposal to allow people to withdraw a quarter of their pension savings. However, a similar proposal will be considered in return. Politicians are, of course, inspired only by good motives - the desire for freedom and goodness. But freedom goes hand in hand with responsibility, which is valid every day and even more so in the long run.

Lithuania ranked ninth in the International Tax Competitiveness Index 2023. This country ranked eighth last year and fourth in 2019. Why is it sliding down instead of finally rising up the pedestal? The International Tax Competitiveness Index assesses tax systems on their simplicity, transparency, neutrality - i.e., fairness to specific activities and income levels - and stability.