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This summary is provided by the STA:
Jourova voices concern over media situation in Slovenia
BRUSSELS, Belgium - EU Commission Vice President for Values and Transparency Vera Jourova pointed to continuous attempts to undermine the sustainable funding and the independence of the Slovenian Press Agency (STA) at a EU Parliament debate on media freedom in Hungary, Poland and Slovenia. She also noted that frequent verbal attacks against journalists in the country were cause for concern. Several MEPs of S&D, Renew and the Greens voiced concern over the situation of Slovenian media, particularly the STA. MEPs of the centre-right EPP did not mention Slovenia in their addresses for the most part, however Slovenian MEPs of this political group Romana Tomc (EPP/SDS) and Franc Bogovič (EPP/SLS) rejected allegations about the Slovenian government exerting pressure on Slovenian media.
DeSUS leader Erjavec resigns
LJUBLJANA - Karl Erjavec, the leader of the Pensioners' Party (DeSUS), announced he was stepping down as president. He is no longer a member of the party either, saying that this was no longer the party he led for 15 years. The statement comes after a session of the party's council, which was supposed to debate the future course of DeSUS after Erjavec spearheaded a failed bid to unseat Prime Minister Janez Janša. Until a new fully-fledged leadership is elected, the party will be headed by Anton Balažek, one of the two vice-presidents.
President wishes Slovenia were not subject of EP debates
SLOVENJ GRADEC - President Borut Pahor said he wished Slovenia were not the subject of debates in the European Parliament, in particular when it comes to freedom of the media, as he commented on a debate on pressure on the media in Hungary, Poland and Slovenia. "I think we all have to endeavour to focus our attention now ... on the final part of battling Covid-19, and that in this sensitive phase we should perhaps not deal with certain matters that are not essential." He said media freedom was "foundational to democratic life".
Restrictions broadly unchanged as state of epidemic extended by a month
BRDO PRI KRANJU - The government extended the majority of coronavirus restrictions by another week as it prolonged the state of the epidemic by another thirty days as part of its weekly review of measures. The one relaxation the government opted for is allowing all construction services to reopen as of 15 March without the need for workers to be tested.
Average daily coronavirus count down as hospitalisations fall below 500
LJUBLJANA - Slovenia confirmed 952 coronavirus cases on Tuesday, down a fifth from the same day a week ago, to push the 7-day average of new daily cases to 728. Four patients died. Of the 6,017 PCR tests performed yesterday, 15.8% came back positive. Over 25,000 rapid antigen tests were also performed with all the positives re-tested with PCR tests. The number of patients hospitalised with Covid-19 dropped by 21 from yesterday to 485, 14 fewer than Saturday morning when hospitalisations fell below the 500 mark for the first time since late October.
Committee okays legislation on EU prosecutors
LJUBLJANA - The Justice Committee endorsed amendments to the act on the state prosecution that lay down the selection criteria for Slovenia's two members of the European Public Prosecutor's Office, amidst complaints by the opposition that the required level of knowledge of English was an unnecessary condition. Slovenia had secured the legal basis for the appointment of delegated EU prosecutors, who will monitor the spending of EU funds, with May 2019 amendments to the state prosecution act. Last autumn the European Public Prosecutor's Office adopted rules of procedure, which requires certain corrections to the Slovenian law.
New management appointed at Telekom
LJUBLJANA - The supervisory board of Telekom Slovenije appointed a new management board headed by CEO Cvetko Sršen, who comes to Telekom from postal operator Pošta Slovenije. He will be joined by another long-time Telekom employee Mitja Štular, and Tomaž Jontes has been with Telekom since 2002. All three started their terms with immediate effect.
Slovenian builder picked for first section of Koper-Divača rail
LJUBLJANA - Kolektor CPG, which submitted the lowest financial offer for main works on the first section of the Koper-Divača rail track, was picked as the winner over a consortium led by Austria's Strabag. The decision will be final in eight days unless there are appeals. Kolektor CPG offered to build the Divača-Črni Kal section for EUR 403.6 million, almost EUR 60 million less than Strabag.
Additional measures urged to help hospitality industry
LJUBLJANA - The parliamentary Economy Committee called on the government to put in place additional measures to help the hospitality industry. While acknowledging that existing aid has been effective and timely, the committee urged the government to reopen the sector as soon as the epidemiological situation permits and to strive for additional aid based on examples of best practice abroad. It called on the Economy Ministry to work towards a single, predictable system of the crossing of borders.
Cinkarna Celje reports 12% lower net profit for 2020
LJUBLJANA - Cinkarna Celje, the Celje-based chemical company, saw its net profit drop by 12% last year to EUR 18.95 million as revenue remained broadly flat with the year before at EUR 172.4 million, despite a drop in sale prices of titanium dioxide pigment, its main product. The company said the attained bottom line was 34% above the projections.
Business excellence award goes to Ptuj health centre
LJUBLJANA - This year's national award for business excellence and international five-star excellence certificate EFQM have been bestowed on the Ptuj Community Health Centre. Investment agency Spirit Slovenija welcomed the fact that the winner is a public sector organisation. The health centre could be a role model in terms of its expertise and organisational management for both Slovenian and foreign health organisations, said Spirit Slovenija, which is in charge of promoting business excellence.
Industrial output up in January after 2020 slump
LJUBLJANA - Slovenia's industrial output increased by 1.3% in January over January 2020. Industrial revenue meanwhile dropped by 1.1% year on year, down 1.8% on foreign markets and up by 1.4% on the domestic market, the Statistics Office said. At monthly level, industrial output rose by 1.6% over December 2020, yet exclusively on account of higher output in manufacturing, which rose by 2%.
Laura Unuk Slovenia's first woman to win International Master title in chess
RIJEKA, Croatia - Chess player Laura Unuk has become the first Slovenian woman to win the International Master title awarded by the international chess governing body FIDE, the second highest-ranking title in chess. Unuk won the title by bagging a victory at the chess tournament Mediterranean Flowers in Croatia's Rijeka on Tuesday. "I only needed this rating and I finally made it," said the 21-year-old student of chemistry and chemical technology, who has entered the tournament as Woman Grandmaster.
FIHO director Vladimir Kukavica steps down
LJUBLJANA - Vladimir Kukavica is stepping down as the director of the Foundation for Funding Disability and Humanitarian Organisations (FIHO) on 30 April after almost three years on the job, citing a lack of transparency at FIHO and some council members acting against the foundation's interests. The development comes after the national Commission for the Prevention of Corruption pinpointed corruption risks in procedures related to the allocation of FIHO funds in its report adopted at the end of February and presented to the public on Monday.
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