Sofia

The European Central bank has warned against proposed amendments to the Deposit Insurance Act, saying they could constitute an infringement on the national bank's independence.

In a statement the Bulgarian National Bank (BNB), Bulgaria's central regulator, cites the letter from ECB signed by the European institution's head Mario Draghi.

A fire broke out at the building of the Kanal 3TV channel in Sofia Tuesday evening, according to reports of Bulgaria's Interior Ministry.

The staff of Kanal 3 have been successfully evacuated from the building in Sofia's Krasna Polyana district.

The fire started in a nearby apartment and was probably caused by a short circuit, according to Nova TV.

Uber, the mobile app for ride sharing and car hiring has launched operations in Sofia.

According to the official information, the fare per kilometre is BGN 0.4 - about half as cheap as the fares of the regular taxi companies. The initial fee is BGN 0.7, the fee for one minute of stay is BGN 0.2. The cancellation fee is BGN 3. The minimum fare is also BGN 3.

The government will invest a total of EUR 300 M in Bulgaria's cash-strapped healthcare in 2016, Regional Development Minister Lilyana Pavlova has announced.

Pavlova told members of the committee overseeing Operational Program Regional Development (2007-2013)  that the next seven years will focus on tackling the most urgent issues in the sector.

Incidents involving attacks on emergency medical teams do not necessarily involve Roma communities, Sofia emergency aid head Georgi Gelev has warned.

He told the Bulgarian National Television that some of the assaults were related to excessive drinking or other problems.

The EU's Transport, Telecommunications and Energy Council is set to meet in Brussels on Tuesday, with the latest developments around the South Stream pipeline topping the agenda.

A proposal to create an internal energy market to connect all electricity and gas grids within the bloc will also be under discussion.

Bulgarian President (2002-2012) and ABV leader Georgi Parvanov has proposed that the South Stream pipeline undergo a second change in route to use the one planned for the Nabucco pipeline.

Parvanov's comments follow last week's decision of Russia to renounce South Stream and to launch an "alternative" version going to Turkey instead.

Codes orange and yellow for wind, heavy rain, ice and snow on the entire territory of Bulgaria are issued for Tuesday.

The code orange for precipitation is valid for the regions of Smolyan, Kurdzhali, Haskovo and Yambol.

Code yellow for heavy rains is issued for the regions of Blagoevgrad, Pazardzhik, Plovdiv, Stara Zagora and Sliven.

Bulgaria's world famous opera prima Raina Kabaivanska will celebrate her 80-th anniversary with a concert gala on December 15, at Hall 1 of the National Palace of Culture (NDK) in Sofia.

The Icelandic electronic band Gus Gus will perform in Sofia on December 11.

The show is part of their world tour, supporting their new album "Mexico". It will take place at Orpheus Studio, 60 Samokov str.

Tickets can be bought in the Eventim ticketing platform.