These are some of the top stories in Bulgarian newspapers on January 13 2009. The Sofia Echo has not verified these stories and cannot vouch for their accuracy.

Politics

- Bulgarian parties rejected the tentative proposal put forth by the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP), the senior partner in the ruling coalition, for 58 Parliament seats to be filled using a majoritarian vote, Monitor daily reports. In addition to opposition parties, BSP's two coalition partners - the National Movement for Stability and Progress and the Movement for Rights and Freedoms - also gave no support to the idea, which meant that it was unlikely to even make it to the legislative drafting board, the daily said.

- Even though Bulgaria was far from experiencing any electricity shortages during the current gas crisis, the Cabinet used the opportunity to once again raise the issue of re-starting the two units of Kozloduy nuclear power plant that it had to shut down before joining the European Union in 2007, Dnevnik daily reported. Although it was clear that the European Commission would never agree to that, BSP leader and Prime Minister Sergei Stanishev embraced the rhetoric as a form of damage control against the inevitable drop in the Cabinet's public approval ratings, the newspaper said.

Social

- At least 4000 people currently employed in pharmacies as beauty products consultants will end up unemployed after the Healthcare Ministry passed a new regulation that only allowed certified pharmacists to work in pharmacies, Trud daily reported. The newspaper quoted industry sources that claimed that the number would be even bigger and that 4000 was a conservative estimate.

- Despite the US economy entering a recession, the number of Bulgarian youths looking for seasonal work through "work-and-travel" programmes shows no sign of decline, Standart daily reported. With petrol prices falling, US domestic tourism could be on the up, which would create additional seasonal jobs, the daily said.

Economy

- The European Commission would decide in February whether to fund any of the gas industry projects on which Bulgaria has asked Brussels for financial assistance, Dnevnik daily quoted Economy and Energy Minister Petar Dimitrov as saying after a meeting of EU ministers on January 12. Bulgaria has reportedly asked the Commission to allocate 400 million euro for the expansion of storage facilities and the construction of links to the gas networks of neighbouring countries.

- The National Road Infrastructure Agency announced plans to begin dismantling about 1700 unauthorised advertising billboards along the country's roads, Sega daily reported. In the Sofia area alone, the number of such billboards was about 350, according to the daily.

- Despite copious amounts of snow, Pamporovo ski resort in the Rhodope mountains could see a decrease in the number of foreign tourists, Standart daily reported. The newspaper quotes officials from the Plovdiv airport, which expects 45 000 tourists to arrive via charter flights this winter season, 25 per cent less than last year. The global financial crisis is only part of the reason, the other being the increased interest in the Bansko resort in the Pirin mountain range, Standart said.