The European Parliament,

–   having regard to the Commission's 2004 Regular Report on Bulgaria's progress towards accession (SEC(2004)1199) and Strategy Paper (COM(2004)0657 – C6‐0150/2004),

–   having regard to the Presidency Conclusions of the Copenhagen European Council of 12 and 13 December 2002, the Thessaloniki European Council of 19 and 20 June 2003 and the Brussels European Council of 12 and 13 December 2003,

–   having regard to its resolutions since the beginning of the accession process,

–   having regard to Rule 45 of its Rules of Procedure,

–   having regard to the report of the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the opinion of the Committee on Budgets (A6‐0065/2004),

A.   whereas Bulgaria is a part of the current inclusive and irreversible enlargement process,

B.   whereas the accession process must be based on the own merits principle and the timing of Bulgaria's accession should not be linked to that of any other candidate country, and whereas Bulgaria should therefore accede to the EU on the basis of an individual accession treaty,

C.   whereas Bulgaria continues its steady progress on the path to accession to the European Union, having provisionally closed all 31 negotiating chapters, and is therefore well on course for accession in January 2007,

1.  Welcomes the Commission's conclusion that Bulgaria continues to fulfil the Copenhagen political criteria, that its economic structures and performance have again significantly improved and that the level of alignment and implementation of commitments all place Bulgaria on track for accession within the envisaged timeframe;

2.  Strongly supports the ongoing reform of Bulgaria's public administration and the amendments to its Civil Service law strengthening the merit principle;

3.  Welcomes the channelling of significantly increased resources into judicial reform and calls for further increased efforts to counter organised crime and corruption as well as trafficking in people; urges the Bulgarian authorities to take effective action to prevent abuse of powers by state authorities against persons entering or transiting Bulgaria; calls on Bulgaria further to take steps to improve conditions for those held in police custody by introducing adequate training for police officers;

4.  Calls on Bulgaria to take further effective action to prevent trafficking in people, especially women and children, including the establishment of a reliable data base for abused and missing persons as well as a reliable system of witness protection;

5.  Commends Bulgaria on its efforts to develop a framework to tackle the problems faced by minorities; calls on Bulgaria, assisted by greater targeted action on the part of the Commission, to take determined measures to expedite the integration of the Roma into mainstream society, particularly through provision of educational and employment opportunities, improved living conditions and access to health care and family planning, while at the same time recognising the need for the Roma themselves to adapt and to assume responsibilities in all those areas;

6.  Welcomes the progress made in child welfare but calls for clarification and strengthening of ministerial responsibility within a single, well-resourced agency, greater transparency in the international adoption system and significant improvement in the situation of children in institutions and special schools; calls on Bulgaria to pay special attention to the situation of persons placed by public authorities in homes for adults with mental disorders;

7.  Supports the Commission's conclusion that Bulgaria is a functioning market economy and commends Bulgaria on its continuous GDP growth, significant decrease in the rate of unemployment and record levels of foreign direct investment while noting that unemployment is still high, many people still fail to see improvement in their economic situation, and the emigration of highly qualified people, together with low mobility of regional labour forces, is creating shortages in some key sectors;

8.  Commends Bulgaria on developing the administrative capacity to implement the acquis and notes that it is on track for early completion of the required legislative transposition;

9.  Points out that for the years 2000 to 2004 total financial pre-accession assistance to Bulgaria has amounted to around EUR 178 million annually from Phare, EUR 57.6 million from SAPARD and between EUR 93 and EUR 127 million from ISPA; supports the decision to provide additional Phare funding of EUR 550 million over the period 2000 to 2009 to facilitate the changing of the Kozloduy nuclear power plant;

10.  Calls on the Commission to improve the management and targeting of Community funds in order to maximise their cost-effectiveness;

11.  Assures Bulgaria that the Parliament will continue to monitor Bulgaria's further progress in its accession preparations;

12.  Calls on the Council and the Commission to reward the progress and achievements made by Bulgaria in its preparations by adhering to the principle of "own merits" and concluding negotiations and signing the Accession Treaty as early as possible in 2005, preferably in the early spring, thus enabling timely ratification and accession on 1 January 2007;

13.  Calls on the Council and Commission, once the Accession Treaty is concluded, to examine the possibilities of increasing pre-accession financial assistance;

14.  Expresses its grave concern over the plight of the Bulgarian and Palestinian medical workers arrested in 1999 as suspects in a criminal case and the death sentences handed down against them on 6 May 2004; pending the appeal process, trusts that Libya, upon re-examination of existing evidence, may wish to conclude that justice would be served by their release at the earliest opportunity;

15.  Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission and the Bulgarian Government and Parliament.