COVID-19 & Slovenia, Night 20 April: Numbers; Sports; Lockdown Fines; 2nd Stimulus Package

By , 20 Apr 2020, 20:37 PM Politics
COVID-19 & Slovenia, Night 20 April: Numbers; Sports; Lockdown Fines; 2nd Stimulus Package Daša Šeruga

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All our stories on coronavirus are here, while those covering covid-19 and Croatia are here. We'll have an update at the end of the day, and if you want newsflashes then we'll post those on Facebook

We can’t have pictures of COVID-19 every day. So instead we’ll try and show the works of Slovenian artists. Today it’s Daša Šeruga, with one of a series of posters from Tam Tam, as seen here.

Contents

Three more die of Covid-19, bringing national death toll to 77

Gradual return to sports accompanied by extensive warnings

Fines issued due to lockdown violations totalling EUR 32,000

Latest estimates value second stimulus package at EUR 2.8bn

Three more die of Covid-19, bringing national death toll to 77

STA, 20 April 2020 - Three more Covid-19 patients died in Slovenia on Sunday, bringing the official national death toll 77. Only five new coronavirus cases have been confirmed, raising the tally to 1,335, fresh data from the government show.

The number of new cases as a rule drops at weekends because fewer people are tested, but the country has been seeing a steady decline in new cases for a while now.

On Sunday, 537 tests were performed, which brings the total of tests so far conducted in the country to 41,802.

A total of 88 Covid-patients were being treated in hospitals on Sunday, 26 of them in intensive care units. One was discharged from hospital, which means 193 Covid-19 patients have so far returned home from hospital.

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Gradual return to sports accompanied by extensive warnings

STA, 20 April 2020 - A limited number of outdoor sports facilities, including tennis courts, golf courses and bowls pitches, were reopened for use as part of a softening of lockdown measures on Monday. Extensive safety instructions accompanying the return to sports however also reveal the impact the virus will have for some time to come.

While group sports remain forbidden, the new coronavirus reality will also leave a strong mark on individual sports that seem risk-free at first glance.

One of the more detailed safety lists, containing many of the measures also advised for other sports, has been published by the Tennis Association, which stressed that persons noticing any signs of infection still need to stay from courts and that these are only open for recreational purposes.

Changing rooms and locker rooms will be closed, while the players are also advised against changing their shirts during or after the match.

Toilets will be closed in case the provider cannot secure regular disinfection, states the association's safety list, which consists of 34 items in total.

No doubles matches are allowed and crossing over to the opponent's side to check the validity of a close call on what are mostly red clay tennis courts in Slovenia is strongly discouraged as well.

Another issue that implies more work for tennis club owners is posed by the cleaning of the court after a match, as players are no longer allowed to touch the nets used to even out the clay surface. The restriction applies to all court maintenance equipment.

Litter bins and loitering at the club house are off limits, while special post-match care also applies to the balls, which should be left in the container for 72 hours.

Finally, players will have to make do without one of the key rituals of the sport, the post-game handshake.

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Fines issued due to lockdown violations totalling EUR 32,000

STA, 20 April 2020 - The Health Inspectorate has launched more than 2,900 procedures and issued fines worth more than EUR 32,000 to people breaking the restrictions in place to slow down the coronavirus epidemic in Slovenia. It received over 110 reports of suspected violations directly from individuals and many more from the police.

The health inspection service has been cooperating with the police in enforcing the decrees on lockdown measures and performing field inspections.

During the epidemic, the inspectorate is the only authority that may initiate procedures and issue fines for violations of movement restrictions and the gathering ban.

The cases processed so far have been mostly referred to the inspectorate by the police and involved individuals. Almost 300 fines have been issued, totalling more than EUR 32,000, the health authority told the STA on Monday.

Over the weekend, the police received a total of 199 reports of alleged violations. Moreover, police officers reported 571 violations themselves on Saturday and Sunday, giving 513 warnings and referring 661 cases to the inspectorate, show police data. Most violations occurred in the Ljubljana and Celje areas.

The police have so far received 1,825 reports and determined more than 5,860 violations by itself, issuing almost 3,970 warnings and referring some 4,820 cases to the health inspection service, including 58 violations of the protection of public order act.

To stem the COVID-19 spread, the government has imposed a number of lockdown measures, including a ban on movement outside one's municipal unit. Since Saturday, the restriction has been eased to a certain degree, allowing maintenance and seasonal works at private properties in other municipalities.

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Latest estimates value second stimulus package at EUR 2.8bn

STA, 20 April - Coming out of Monday's coordination meeting for the emerging new coronavirus emergency package, coalition members explained the current total value of the envisaged measures, focusing on securing liquidity for businesses, was EUR 2.8 billion.

Reports on the liquidity measures, coming after a EUR 3 billion stimulus package seeking to prevent job loss and protect vulnerable groups, so far mentioned EUR 900 million to be given at the disposal of companies in the form of loans, guarantees and guarantee schemes. The Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GZS) spoke of EUR 2 billion in one statement.

The coalition discussed today changes to the first package and the new stimulus, both of which the government hopes to finalise today and on Tuesday and have ready for adoption in parliament on 28 and 29 April.

The deputy group head of the senior coalition Democrats (SDS) Danijel Krivec also announced a third package today saying "it will seek to kickstart growth while the measures will secure investment in infrastructure and might also include additional measures for tourism".

The Agriculture Ministry said today the third package was also to include measures for the agriculture and food sector, primarily focussing on new investment, plant production and boosting food self-sufficiency.

Coalition partners were mostly content today with the degree to which their proposals had been incorporated into the new package, but many raised the issue of tourism, which is likely to continue to struggle even after other sectors pick up.

Janja Sluga of the Modern Centre Party (SMC) said tourism should be approached "in a more comprehensive matter". She meanwhile also suggested not enough had been done for self-employed culture workers.

Still being coordinated are provisions laying down the extent to which loans taken out by companies to bridge the crisis are to be covered with state guarantees.

Franc Jurša of the Pensioners' Party (DeSUS) revealed that small companies would probably get 80% guarantee coverage and large companies 70%.

Coalition parties can still forward their proposals to the government today to be studied by government task forces. The government is expected to endorse amendments to the first corona package and the draft second corona bill on Tuesday, so they could be discussed by the parliamentary finance committee on Friday or Saturday. The motions should be put up for a vote in parliament on 28 and 29 April.

The part of the opposition which was critical of the first corona epidemic legislative package is displeased with the draft second package as well.

MPs of the Marjan Šarec List (LMŠ), Social Democrats (SD) and the Left pointed to the "still forgotten groups of citizens" and unclarity about state guarantees.

Brane Golubović of the LMŠ said the package did not bring solutions for the most problematic sector - the hospitality and tourism sector. He also wants to know whether the EUR 2 billion in planned state guarantees included those planned for the Koper-Divača rail project, the housing scheme and the north-south expressway.

Matjaž Han of the SD warned that all companies in need of aid would still not receive it. He too pointed to the problems of the hospitality and tourism sector, which would have long-term problems with hiring.

Miha Kordiš of the Left said that a large part of precarious workers, the unemployed and tenants were still being left out.

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