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This summary is provided by the STA:
Motion filed to oust Janša government
LJUBLJANA - An informal coalition of centre-left opposition parties filed a motion of no confidence in the Janez Janša government with the backing of 42 of the 90 deputies of the National Assembly. The crux of their argument is the government's failure to cope with the coronavirus epidemic. The motion, which puts forward Karl Erjavec as candidate for prime minister, who regretted they had only 42 signatures, but added: "I'm convinced we can succeed. The country's de-normalisation needs to be stopped. Prime Minister Janez Janša has described the motion as "mischievous", a "pathetic out-pour of ideological hatred" to those who think differently. He said this would be comical were Slovenia not in the middle of a bad wave of the epidemic.
Daily coronavirus count keeps falling
LJUBLJANA - A total of 1,478 people tested positive for coronavirus in Slovenia on Thursday as the daily increase in infections dropped on the week before for the sixth day running. Another 28 Covid-19 patients lost their lives, fresh government data showed. Out of the 4,897 PCR tests a total of 1,144 or 23.4% came back positive. According to the NIJZ institute, the 7-day average of new daily cases fell to 1,455 from 1,540 the day before, nearing the set limit of 1,350 below which easing of restrictions can begin. The number of Covid-19 patients in hospitals remained level with the day before, at 1,266 with 197 patients in intensive care units, two fewer than on Wednesday.
Police trade union files criminal charges against minister
LJUBLJANA - PSS, one of the two trade unions in the Slovenian police force, which started a police strike to demand higher pay this week, has filed criminal charges against Interior Minister Aleš Hojs over his publishing of a document with pay data for nearly 9,000 members of the police force and ministry employees. The PSS argues the publishing of the document on the first day of the strike was in breach of law. Hojs dismissed the allegations, saying that the released data were public information under the law and not labelled classified information. A parliamentary commission debated the issue to vote against an opposition-proposed resolution that Hojs's act was inappropriate and affected the security in the police force.
Petrol takes over Croatia's Crodux
LJUBLJANA - Slovenia's energy company Petrol has taken over an outright stake in Croatian petroleum products seller Crodux as a result of which Petrol will acquire 91 service stations in Croatia once the deal has been cleared by regulators. Petrol said the deal was signed on 12 January with Ivan Čermak, the owner of Crodux. The takeover will increase Petrol's market share in Croatia from 13% to 23%, as the company will operate more than 200 points of sale there. The newspaper Finance has reported that the company was priced at EUR 200 million in the past, but Crodux at the time said the figure was undervalued.
Vaccination at medical school extended to non-staff
LJUBLJANA - The Covid-19 vaccination at the Ljubljana Faculty of Medicine seems to have been extended to persons who are not staff. Allegedly the shots that were left after staff inoculation were administered to doctors' relatives to use all the prepared jabs. The Ljubljana Oncology Institute said it was considering vaccinating the oldest relatives of their staff if any doses were left after staff immunisation. It added that the authorities had given no instructions yet on how to proceed in such a situation, except for a health inspector who said the institute should then adhere to the priority group guidelines.
Anti-graft watchdog determines breach of integrity in ex-minister case
LJUBLJANA - The Commission for the Prevention of Corruption has determined a breach of integrity and provisions banning the accepting of gifts in a case concerning Aleksandra Pivec, the former minister of agriculture. The watchdog's conclusion comes after an investigation of two visits to the coastal region in 2019 and 2020 in which she reportedly mixed business with family matters and which ultimately led to her resignation first as Pensioners' Party leader in September and then as agriculture minister in October. Pivec disagrees with such an interpretation of the decision.
Strike under way at US-owned sewing threads company in Maribor
MARIBOR - Almost all workers on the morning shift at A&E Europe, the American-owned Maribor sewing threads manufacturer, went on strike to demand better pay after talks with the management failed to make progress since a token strike in December. David Ažnoh, the vice-head of the KSS association of trade unions, said that unless there was any major progress, an open-ended strike would go ahead on 26 January. The union also turned to President Borut Pahor for help as the only politician who has responded to their recent appeals.
Adria Mobil's sales down slightly in last business year
LJUBLJANA - Adria Mobil, a leading European caravan maker, was on its way to achieve one of the best results in history at the beginning of the 2019/2020 business year but this did not materialise due to the coronavirus epidemic. Nevertheless, the company still sold 14,454 products in Europe to generate EUR 401 million in revenue, down slightly compared to the previous business year. While most sale outlets for the European market were closed for weeks, the caravanning market was revived quickly, the Novo Mesto-based company said. The company expanded its production facilities by 3,800 square metres.
Slovenia seeks to buy Italian C-27J Spartan transport aircraft
LJUBLJANA - Slovenia wants to buy an Alenia C-27J Spartan military transport aircraft made by Leonardo under a government-to-government contract with Italy, the Slovenian Defence Ministry said. A task force picked the aircraft late last year and an expert council for key investments has completed the investment procedure. Based on that, the ministry's Logistics Directorate commenced government-to-government procurement procedures, which have been halted now that the Constitutional Court has stayed the implementation of a law on EUR 780 million in defence investments pending its final decision.
Pahor's climate advisors urge decisive action against climate change
LJUBLJANA - President Borut Pahor's permanent advisory committee on climate policy called on the government to take all necessary measures for efficient and timely action against climate change. The committee proposes the government make a plan for post-epidemic economic recovery with a focus on investment in sustainable development. "The government should declare an environmental and climate crisis or act as if the crisis was declared," the committee said.
Illegal migration down by 10% last year
LJUBLJANA - Slovenian police handled 14,592 attempts by migrants to cross illegally into the country last year, which compares to 16,252 the year before, a decline of roughly 10%. Two-thirds of the migrants were from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Morocco. The police noted the slowdown in migration was due to coronavirus restrictions and weather conditions. A new surge is expected once it gets warmer in spring.
Ban on overtaking for lorries on A1 motorway enters into force
LJUBLJANA - A 6am-6pm ban on overtaking for lorries on the A1 motorway between Šentilj and Koper entered into force. Police controls are beefed up. The new regime applies to lorries weighing more than 7.5 tonnes. Overtaking is still allowed for these vehicles during the day in three-lane sections, and on the entire motorway in night time.
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