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This summary is provided by the STA:
Slovenia won't accept paying for gas in roubles, minister says
GROSUPLJE - Slovenia rejects paying for Russian gas supplies in roubles and it won't accept Russia's engaging in extortion, Infrastructure Minister Jernej Vrtovec said during a government visit to southern part of Central Slovenia. He stressed the EU was united in its rejection of paying for Russian gas in roubles as demanded by Russian President Vladimir Putin. He assessed the prospects for a diversification of gas supply as good while saying there were presently no reasons to limit energy use.
Most ministers, MPs standing in 24 April election
LJUBLJANA - More than 1,400 candidates for members of parliament have been fielded by 20 parties and groupings that have entered the election race. Ten of the 18 ministers and 80 of the 90 sitting MPs are on the ballot. Just over 44% of the candidates are women, according to preliminary data. Few MPs have opted not to stand again, among them five from the largest faction, the Democrats (SDS). One notable absence is Speaker Igor Zorčič, who defected from the Modern Centre Party (SMC) and formed his own party.
Slovenia to take part in Locked Shields cyber defence exercise
LJUBLJANA - Slovenia will take part in the Locked Shields 2022 cyber defence and strategic decision-making exercise organised by the NATO Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence in Tallinn, Estonia, from 19 April to 22 April. The main purpose of the exercise is to practice technical procedures to counter cyber attacks caused by simulated vulnerabilities of a private training network, says a release issued after the government endorsed the participation on Thursday.
GZS forecasts 3.7% growth this year
LJUBLJANA - Analysts at the Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GZS) forecast for the Slovenian economy to expand by 3.7% this year, a rate that is to slow down to 3.2% in 2023. Inflation is to peak this year at 5.2% before falling to 3% next year. GZS says this year's economic outlook is relatively favourable for Slovenia despite the challenges posed by geopolitical risk in Eastern Europe. Unofficially, the government's forecaster IMAD has downgraded its forecast for this year from 4.7% to 4.2%.
Over 55,000 Ukrainian refugees have transited Slovenia, minister says
LOGATEC - More than 55,000 refugees from Ukraine have so far transited Slovenia, mostly to get to their relatives and friends in Italy, Spain or France, while more than 5,800 have been accommodated in Slovenia, Interior Minister Aleš Hojs said as he visited the refugee centre in Logatec as part of a government visit to Central Slovenia. Less than 1,000 refugees are staying in Slovenian accommodation centres, and the rest in private accommodation or with their relatives or friends.
Parsifal poll shows gap between front-runners narrowing
LJUBLJANA - The gap between the Democrats (SDS) and the Freedom Movement appears to be narrowing, according to the latest iteration of the Parsifal poll conducted for Siol news portal. Whereas the SDS was almost nine points ahead a week ago, it now has a six-point advantage. While both parties lost ground, the SDS slipped by more than three points to 21.7%, whereas the Freedom Movement lost less than a point to 15.4%. The Social Democrats (SD) remained in third with 6.5%, down more than a point.
EU advocate says C-bank cannot finance bank bailout damages
LUXEMBOURG, Luxembourg - Juliane Kokott, an advocate general at the EU's court, issued a preliminary opinion at the request of the Slovenian Constitutional Court to find that the Slovenian central bank's financing compensation for bank shareholders and bondholders who lost their assets in the 2013 bailout would run afoul of the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU. Under the 2019 law that is subject of review, Banka Slovenije has been setting profit aside into a special reserve fund intended for the compensation.
State to guarantee for up to EUR 392m in road investment loans
LJUBLJANA - The parliamentary Finance Committee okayed a bill to secure state loan guarantees of up to EUR 392 million for national motorway company DARS to facilitate EUR 785 million investments into four expressway sections and an expansion of a part of the Ljubljana ring road. The planned investments include a section in the northern part of the emerging north-south expressway axis as well the first section in its southern part, and two legs of an expressway between Ptuj and Ormož in NE.
Presidents of EU supreme courts meet in Ljubljana
LJUBLJANA - The board of the Network of the Presidents of the Supreme Judicial Courts of the European Union held a session in Ljubljana, attended by presidents of supreme courts from five EU countries, including Slovenia's Damijan Florjančič. The meeting focussed on the importance of explaining the decisions of the supreme and other courts. Officials agreed the main topics this year will be AI in judiciary, respect for the rule of law and restoring people's trust in the legal system. The board was also received by President Borut Pahor.
Meat prices going up
LJUBLJANA - Slovenian meat processing companies, large and small, have raised prices of their product by up to 30%, or plan price hikes in the near future, as they attempt to offset the rising cost of inputs such as energy and transport. Celjske Mesnine has already raised prices of pork, beef and processed products by 30%, and the Maribor company Košaki raised theirs by 10-30%. Poultry company Perutnina Ptuj and Pivka Delamaris, a poultry and fish processing company, plan to raise prices in the coming months.
Largest dairy raising milk prices for farmers
LJUBLJANA - Ljubljanske Mlekarne, the country's largest dairy, announced on Thursday that it will pay more for milk to farmers in April and May, raising the price by 2.5 cents per kilogram each month. This comes after farmers stressed at talks last week that the average milk price for farmers in Slovenia was among the lowest in the EU, at 35.9 cents per kilo, and their trade union demanded that it immediately increased by 5 cents to 42 cents per kilo, the EU average.
Start of Ig prison construction this year
LJUBLJANA - Construction of a new prison for women in Ig on the outskirts of Ljubljana is expected to start this year and be completed in 2025. It is estimated to cost EUR 43 million, the Justice Ministry said in a release after Minister Marjan Dikaučič visited Ig prison as part of the government visit to southern Central Slovenia. The only penal facility for women in Slovenia, Ig Prison is currently located in an old castle. A new facility is designed to ensure adequate living and security conditions for all inmates, including mothers, juveniles and elderly convicts, and adequate working conditions for the staff. It will feature detention and closed wards, while the semi-open and open wards are planned as part of the reconstruction of the castle.
Slovenian-German Chamber of Commerce gets new head
LJUBLJANA - Dagmar von Bohnstein took over as the new head of the Slovenian-German Chamber of Commerce. On the occasion, she pointed to the current challenges in Europe and importance of a strong international network and bilateral economic community to face them. Taking over from Gertrud Rantzen, who ended her 15-year stint at the end of March, Von Bohnstein said Slovenia had an exceptional geographic position and great potential as a link between the west and east of the EU.
Coronavirus keeps fizzling out
LJUBLJANA - A total of 2,373 people tested positive for coronavirus in Slovenia on Thursday, 15% fewer than a week ago. Six patients with Covid-19 died, Health Ministry data shows. Hospital figures remain stable with a total of 191 patients treated for Covid-19 in hospitals this morning, including 35 in intensive care. According to the National Institute of Public Health, the 7-day average of new cases dropped to 2,529 and the 14-day incidence per 100,000 to 1,809.
Slovenia among top five European countries in PM 2.5 exposure
COPENHAGEN, Denmark - Slovenia is among the five European countries alongside Italy, Greece, Bulgaria, Slovakia and Poland with the highest recorded concentrations of the PM 2.5 fine particulate matter, shows the latest annual assessment of air quality by the European Environment Agency (EEA). The report includes the official data for 2020 and provisional data for 2021 on concentrations of key air pollutants measured at more than 4,500 measuring stations in 37 European countries.
OSCE office to assess election process in Slovenia
LJUBLJANA - The OSCE's Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) will send a mission to assess the 24 April general election in Slovenia. Unlike its election observation missions, this one will not include long-term observers who would stay in the country or regions for a while, or short-term observers who would visit polling stations on election day. It will consist of several experts, who are expected to arrive in Slovenia on 12 April to examine the election process and preparations for election, the National Electoral Commission said.
Ljutomer judge harasser ordered psychiatric treatment
MARIBOR - Newspapers reported that the man who stalked Ljutomer judge Gorazd Tivadar and smashed the windscreen on his car in January would not be held criminally liable on the grounds of insanity defence. He has been ordered to undergo mandatory psychiatric treatment. The man was detained in January after stalking the judge for ten years. The prosecution initially argued there were no grounds for detention.
