STA, 27 January - Marjan Šarec, who resigned on Monday, will see his term as prime minister end when the National Assembly takes note of his resignation. This could happen as early as Wednesday. The term of the entire cabinet will end at the same time and the government will assume a caretaker role. A snap election could be held in late April.

The parliamentary rules of procedure say that the prime minister must inform government ministers about the resignation, and has the right to explain the resignation in the National Assembly.

After the parliamentary speaker is notified about the resignation, the matter is put on the agenda of a National Assembly session at the latest in seven days. The National Assembly does not take a vote, but only takes note that the prime minister's term has ended.

As a regular, three-day plenary started today, parliamentary Speaker Dejan Židan said that MPs could take note of Šarec's resignation already on Wednesday.

Židan added that, considering the rules for the further procedure in the case of resignation of a prime minister, a snap election could be held in the second half of April.

Following the National Assembly getting formally acquainted with the resignation, the president of the republic has 30 days to propose a candidate for the new prime minister to parliament.

Following the resignation of Alenka Bratušek as prime minister in 2014, the predominant opinion was that the deadline could be shortened if all qualified candidates renounce the possibility to nominate a prime minister-designate.

If there are no candidates for prime minister-designate, this is also formally confirmed by the National Assembly, after which a new 14-day period starts in which a candidate could be proposed by a deputy group or a group of at least 10 MPs.

If this round is unsuccessful as well, a 48-hour period starts in which MPs may decide whether to go for the third round, and if a new prime minister is not elected, the president dissolves the National Assembly and calls a snap election.

Šarec himself called for a snap election to be held as soon as possible, which in accordance with the relevant law are held not later than two months after the dissolution of the National Assembly.

The term of the current National Assembly will end with the maiden session of the MPs elected in the snap election, which must be held not later than 20 days after the election.

Not later than 30 days after the maiden session, the president must put forward a nominee for prime minister-designate following consultations with the deputy groups.

As a rule, this is the president of the party which has won a relative majority in the election. The nominee is voted on in a secret ballot and is elected with an absolute majority of 46 MPs.

Most parties favour snap election

STA, 27 January 2020 - First reactions to Marjan Šarec's surprise announcement that he was stepping down to seek a snap election indicate most parties favour an early election, while Zdravko Počivalšek, the leader of the Modern Centre Party (SMC) which Šarec mentioned as a potential pre-election ally, does not see the need for a snap election.

Janez Janša, the leader of the largest opposition party deems an early election by far the likeliest and probably the best option. His Democratic Party (SDS) is holding a session of the executive council on Thursday or Friday to decide steps in the wake of Šarec's resignation.

However, Janša proposes for the time ahead of the election, which he reckons could be held in the second half of April, to be used to pass urgently needed laws that Slovenia had been waiting for years or decades. The SDS thus invited other parties to start talks on those laws.

Janša listed a bill on the demographic fund to shore up the pension system, which he said had already been drafted, a bill to cut waiting times in healthcare that had been drawn up by the Medical Chamber and tabled by the opposition New Slovenia (NSi) and a bill on public procurement in healthcare, to be filed by the SDS shortly.

"It may be easier to pass these laws at the time when there's no government, and that those who have opposed these laws, or turned down talks themselves, may be willing to talk. Also, because voters may be more attentive at this time," said Janša.

Given the current composition of the National Assembly, Janša believes it would be hard to form a solid development coalition.

"It may be possible forming a coalition which would do less damage than the one that fell irreversibly apart today. But there are many doubts there as well," said Janša, who was unable to form a government coalition after the 2018 election even though his party won a plurality of the vote.

The opposition New Slovenia (NSi) and the Left, and the coalition Social Democrats (SD) also favour an early election and the new leader of the Pensioners' Party (DeSUS), Aleksandra Pivec said DeSUS was ready for a fresh election, but would want to talks things through in the party before taking any decisions.

Meanwhile, the coalition SMC and the Alenka Bratušek Party (SAB) are not keen, as is not the opposition National Party (SNS).

"I don't see the need to have a fresh election at the moment because of the government's resignation," said Počivalšek, the economy minister.

He said that the situation in Slovenia was stable at the moment and could be used to go forward. He was open for talks in all directions provided they benefit one and the other party.

"I had a hunch that something like that would happen, considering what've experienced recently," Počivalšek told reporters after Šarec announced he was stepping down.

Asked whether he would be involved in an attempt to form a new government headed by SDS leader Janez Janša or NSi head Matej Tonin, he said the SMC was interested in cooperation and in what was good for the country: "We don't intends to go left or right, not backward but forward."

Asked whether he would be willing to act as the prime-minister designate himself, Počivalšek said that all options were open.

As to pre-election cooperation offered to the SMC by Šarec, Počivalšek said the party was cooperating with everyone. They were talking how Slovenia could do better with ones and the others.

Last updated 12:30 27/01/2020

STA, 27 January 2020 - Prime Minister Marjan Šarec has announced he is stepping down in a bid to push for a snap election, saying he could not achieve what he set out to do with the current minority coalition.

"With 13 MPs and this coalition I cannot fulfil people's expectations at the moment. But I can fulfil them after elections," Šarec told reporters on Monday, shortly after it transpired that Finance Minister Andrej Bertoncelj was stepping down, presumably over differences regarding health insurance.

Related - A Short History of Prime Ministerial Resignations in Slovenia

"People on the ground should say whether they trust me or not," Šarec said, adding that he could not know whether the polls showing 50% support for the government were right and that a snap election would show whether the approval ratings were realistic or not.

He said that even the previous government, which had 36 and later 35 MPs in the 90-strong National Assembly, was not capable of implementing any substantial reform.

"If we head for elections, if there's that will, we have spoken with Zdravko Počivalšek about that, to link up to go together so you didn't have to guess what's happening behind the scenes," Šarec said.

Apart from Počivalšek's Modern Centre Party (SMC), Šarec was also offering cooperation to other local initiatives, lists and initiatives and everyone interested in contesting the election.

However, in his first reaction Počivalšek said that Šarec's resignation did not mean yet there was a need for a fresh election.

Šarec said he was aware that after his resignation "parliamentary kitchen may be set into motion to start forming a new government".

However, he believes the fairest thing to do for citizens as well as for oneself would be "heading for an early election and let people tell whether they trust me".

Looking back on a year and a half in office, he said that on 13 September 2018 when his government took over there were a number of problems awaiting them, including talks with public sector trade unions and budgets for 2020 and 2021.

"In the meantime, we implemented tax optimisation and reduced the tax burden on the holiday allowance, which has had a favourable effect on domestic consumption and people certainly had more in their purses."

He also noted the increase in social transfers, improvements to the situation in the police force, reduction of state debt, and the budgets for 2020 and 2021, the first ones with a surplus.

"Considering the past government, this is a good achievement," he said, adding that the government also saw to the fiscal stability, but said that Slovenia had one of the most rigid fiscal rules in the EU, which needed to be softened.

"The government has sailed safely through many dire straits and I must say successfully," Šarec summed up his record in office, adding that the cabinet adopted measures allowing the country to run on, but that citizens reported many problems that needed to be tackled.

He believes electoral law could have been reformed, "if there were less talks and more will". He also noted the challenge of long-term care and demographic fund and new housing legislation.

A Short Biography of Marjan Šarec, Ex-Comic & Slovenia's Youngest PM

STA, 19 January 2020 - The Marjan Šarec government is entering a new challenging period as Karl Erjavec, the mainstay of Slovenian government politics for 15 years, announced he was withdrawing from public life after losing the contest for the leadership of the Pensioners' Party (DeSUS) to Aleksandra Pivec.

Campaigning on an alternative vision of the party's future in a desire to make it more inclusive and collaborative, Pivec, the 47-year-old serving as agriculture minister, won 143 votes at Saturday's congress to Erjavec's 80 in a development that few had expected.

As soon as the results were declared, Erjavec announced his intention to resign as defence minister. Taking a step further, he issued what he described as his "last political statement" on the morning after, announcing that he was withdrawing from public life altogether.

"Since 2004 I have been part of all the governments, served as minister in various departments (...) after the congress's decision that I will no longer lead DeSUS, I see no reason to continue as a minister or government member any longer," the 59-year-old said in a written statement.

While Erjavec is willing to discuss the timing of his resignation with Prime Minister Marjan Šarec so as not to cause any inconvenience to the government, his decision is expected to put the ruling coalition in a tight spot as it struggles to secure a majority to appoint his replacement.

Sources close to the Pensioners' Party (DeSUS) say that quick moves are not to be expected, because any potential candidate to succeed Erjavec at the ministerial post would first need to get the endorsement of the party bodies, which are yet to formed anew in the coming weeks following the congress.

While Šarec was quick to welcome Pivec's victory on Saturday night, he has not yet commented on Erjavec's decision to resign as minister, and coalition parties have been mostly muted in their reactions, but appear to be concerned about how to muster a majority needed to appoint a new minister.

Matjaž Han, the leader of the deputy faction of the Social Democrats (SD) is aware that "it will be absolutely hard to get a new minister through parliament".

The narrow vote on Angelika Mlinar, the cohesion policy minister, in December showed how precarious the ruling coalition's position became after the Left withdrew its support, with the opposition National Party (SNS) staying away in order to tip the scales as even one DeSUS member voted against Mlinar.

Rok Čakš, the editor of the news portal Domovina, said that Šarec was probably not happy with Erjavec's standing down as minister, even though he preferred Pivec as a non-confrontational person at the helm of the coalition partner, and pulled some strings to make that happen.

"Not because the prime minister would be happy with his [Erjavec's] work, but because it means he will have to put forward a new ministerial candidate to the National Assembly. As seen in the case of Angelika Mlinar, securing the required parliamentary majority is all but a routine for the Šarec minority government," Čakaš commented.

By contrast, even as admitting that developments remain unpredictable, analyst Andraž Zorko from the pollster Valicon maintained that DeSUS's decision to vote out Erjavec made the Šarec government stronger. What is more, he sees it as a very positive step for further developments in Slovenia.

Another question raised in the wake of the congress was a potential rift in the DeSUS deputy faction, as three out of the party's five MPs backed Erjavec in the leadership contest.

However, all of the DeSUS MPs, bar the rebel MP Robert Polnar, who has withdrawn his support for the minority government on several occasions and who failed to attend the congress, were quick to pledge their support for the new leader, and rushed to assure the public of the deputy faction's unity.

Erjavec's resignation also raised speculation about a government reshuffle, as Pivec indicated she planned to talk it through with Šarec whether DeSUS might assume responsibility for some other ministry than defence.

In her address to the congress, Pivec suggested DeSUS focus on areas concerning its platform in the future, including taking over at the Ministry of Labour, the Family, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities.

However, coalition parties expressed their reservations about any broader reshuffle at the moment, and
DeSUS told the STA that the party would discuss changing government departments only if Šarec was considering a reshuffle, but they would not want to interfere in the coalition partners' briefs.

Social Democrat Han said that having a broader reshuffle endorsed by parliament given the current balance of power, would be a "mission impossible", adding that DeSUS would simply need to find a new defence minister.

STA, 11 December 2019 - Election legislation, provinces and climate change ranked prominently as the country's top four officials met for an end-of-year reception in Ljubljana on Wednesday. Coming out of the meeting, President Borut Pahor said changes to election legislation should be ready for parliamentary procedure at the start of 2020.

Pahor said the leaders of deputy groups in parliament who support the proposed abolishing of electoral districts and introduction of a preferential vote would be urged to iron out the proposal in January so that the necessary signatures of support could be collected.

Changing the electoral legislation in line with a Constitutional Court decision is strategically speaking a key political issue in Slovenia, Pahor said after the meeting with Prime Minister Marjan Šarec, Speaker Dejan Židan and National Council President Alojz Kovšca.

The president had launched the debate on possible legislative changes after the Constitutional Court declared the size of electoral districts for general election unconstitutional at the end of last year.

Predsednik Republike Slovenije Borut Pahor v Predsedniški palači gosti tradicionalno srečanje štirih predsednikov, države, vlade, državnega zbora in državnega sveta. pic.twitter.com/oK7vPk8eIt

— Borut Pahor (@BorutPahor) December 11, 2019

After seven rounds of talks with representatives of parliamentary parties and two meetings with deputy group heads, Pahor believes the proposal to abolish electoral districts and introduce a preferential vote is ready to be made into a bill.

In order to be passed in parliament, it will need to be backed by at least 60 MPs in the 90-member legislature. "If and when 60 or more MP signatures are collected, the proposal will be filed to parliament."

However, Pahor believes that a step further should also be taken to close the debate on the proposal to change the borders of the electoral districts as an alternative to the first solution.

The top officials agreed today that the deputy group heads who want to finish this debate should meet with the public administration minister in January, so that both proposals could be on MPs' table at the beginning of next year.

PM Šarec said he was in favour of scrapping electoral districts and introducing the preferential vote in order to give voters more say on who was to sit in parliament.

Speaker Židan expressed hope that the parties who had publicly supported this solution would also contribute signatures.

He also pointed to Tuesday's debate hosted by the Women Parliamentarians Club, where participants agreed that legislative solutions should be aimed at increasing gender-balanced representation in parliament.

National Council President Kovšca said the Constitutional Court had also found the National Council act unconstitutional in the part mentioning the possibility of appeal to election to the upper chamber. He said changes to the act had already been filed to parliament and expressed hope MPs would discuss it in January.

Turning to provinces, Pahor said that a task force of the National Council had done an excellent job in preparing guidelines for legislative changes.

The top officials agreed today that the finance minister should get involved in the drawing up of a bill on the financing of provinces in the next two months.

Kovšca said that in the first phase more than 50 experts had formed the proposal on the setting up of provinces. They covered the territorial aspect, and made a list of tasks to be transferred from the state and municipalities to provinces, he noted.

In the first phase of a public debate, local communities will be asked to give their remarks, while the government will review the financial aspect, he said.

When this phase is completed, the work of the National Council will be over and the proposal will be sent to the National Assembly.

Šarec said the government supported the idea of provinces but that their tasks would need to be defined and their seats picked as well. "Provinces must serve a purpose, implement tasks, and citizens must benefit from the arrangement," he said.

This was the first time that the top officials also discussed climate policy at their annual meeting. They agreed that special attention must be paid to three documents related to the climate and energy policy of the country which will be discussed in the public and the National Assembly next year.

There must be plenty of opportunity for a broad political and social debate, they agreed.

Šarec said a big problem was the sixth generator of the Šoštanj Thermal Power Plant (TEŠ), "which gives us 25% of electricity". "Until we close TEŠ 6, it will be difficult to talk about a greener environmental policy," he said.

Pahor agreed that TEŠ would need to be shut down sooner than planned, but he stressed this would not be possible overnight. However, preparations for its closure should be sped up, he said, adding that alternative energy sources needed to be introduced.

Šarec and Židan agreed it should first be acknowledged that climate change is a reality, and then Slovenia should not only set ambitious goals but also start implementing them.

STA, 26 November 2019 - Prime Minister Marjan Šarec visited the Government Office for the Support and Integration of Migrants and the appertaining asylum centre in the Ljubljana Vič borough on Tuesday, praising their efforts.

Accompanied by Interior Minister Boštjan Poklukar, Šarec visited the Reception and Support Division and was acquainted with accommodation procedures.

A release from the Government Communication Office said that the issue of integration of persons with recognised international protection status ranked prominently during the visit.

It said that the main challenge in the field was preparing action plans of integration for the implementation of the government's migration strategy.

The release said that, in dealing with the challenges of migration, Slovenia remained committed to preserving a right balance between solidarity and security.

Šarec also visited the division for families where he met the youngest residents of the asylum centre. Commenting on his visit, he said that asylum seekers were being accommodated and attended to in accordance with Slovenian and EU legislation.

He found that the accommodation capacities were not overcrowded and that apart from regular psychosocial care the asylum seekers benefited from many other activities provided by NGOs. The prime minister praised the efforts put in the integration of migrants.

Upon his visit, the asylum centre accommodated 201 residents, most of them coming from Morocco, Algeria and Iraq.

STA, 28 October 2019 - Prime Minister Marjan Šarec and his Hungarian counterpart Viktor Orban called for strengthening economic cooperation between the two countries. The pair moreover urged a continuation of EU enlargement, while also discussing migration.

Hungary is Slovenia's sixth largest trade partner, with trade increasing by 9.1% in 2018 to exceed EUR 2 billion for the first time.

"I'm happy about this figure, but I'll be even happier if it will be higher," Šarec told the press after the meeting.

The pair meanwhile expressed regret that EU leaders recently failed to provide the green light for the start of accession negotiation talks with North Macedonia and Albania.

Šarec and Orban also talked about the situation of the respective minorities in Slovenia and Hungary, agreeing both needed to be secured opportunities for developing economically in the areas where they lived.

Premier @sarecmarjan in madžarski premier Orbán sta v pogovoru največ pozornosti namenila oceni dvostranskih odnosov, dinamiki gospodarskega sodelovanja ter možnostim za dodatno izkoriščenost obstoječega potenciala, aktualnim evropskim temam in izzivom v naši skupni soseščini. pic.twitter.com/8zDrrpxKbM

— Vlada Republike Slovenije (@vladaRS) October 28, 2019

Orban dedicated a substantial part of the press conference to migration, saying that the two countries knew very well what migration was and what it meant if a large number of migrants crossed the border in an uncontrolled way.

Šarec added that the issue of migration needed to be addressed at its root. "This is the joint task of the EU," he said.

The Slovenian PM was also scheduled to meet parliamentary Speaker Laszlo Köver and Slovenians living in Hungary.

Accompanied by Economic Development and Technology Minister Zdravko Počivalšek, Šarec also attended an annual promotional event hosted by the Slovenian Tourism Board (STO).

All  our stories on Hungary and Slovenia are here

STA, 10 September 2019 - Economic relations topped the agenda as Prime Minister Marjan Šarec paid an official visit to Moscow on Tuesday. Ways to increase trade were discussed and investments were also broached, including the politically sensitive expansion of the Krško nuclear power station, a project of interest to Russian investors.

 Šarec and Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev came out of talks calling for a strengthening of cooperation, noting that bilateral trade could increase despite ongoing EU sanctions against Russia.

Merchandise trade rose by nine percent last year and similar results are expected this year, Medvedev said. Both prime ministers said that it should be diversified

Both said investments should be strengthened as well, with Šarec noting that Russia is Slovenia's fifth largest destination for outward foreign investments, the goal being that it climb even higher.

Predsednik vlade @sarecmarjan je na srečanju ?? in ?? gospodarstvenikov poudaril, da je ?? za nas pomembna gospodarska partnerica. Izrazil je zadovoljstvo, da ga spremljajo predsedniki uglednih ?? podjetij, ki so poznani na ?? trgu in v svetovnem merilu. https://t.co/5WeB5nsnYO pic.twitter.com/A81vo1xLfp

— Vlada Republike Slovenije (@vladaRS) September 10, 2019

Šarec was told Russian investors are interested in rail projects in Slovenia and the planned construction of a second unit at the Krško nuclear power station.

"The Russians are interested in participating. Russia is already building a nuclear power station in Hungary. I told them that we have a long procedure ahead with regard to the second unit at the nuclear power station, a process that may take as much as ten years," the prime minister told Slovenian reporters.

Šarec refused to say at whose initiative nuclear energy was broached, and when quizzed how it might affect Slovenia's relations with the US if Russia was to build unit two at Krško, he said: "Slovenia is neither pro-American nor pro-Russian, Slovenia is pro-European and pro-Slovenian."

Another major issue on the agenda was Slovenian retailer Mercator and its parent company Agrokor. The healthy assets of Agrokor are in the process of being transferred onto a new entity, Fortenova, and the Russian bank Sberbanka is among the largest creditors.

Medvedev suggested Slovenia should help in the restructuring of Agrokor, saying that "it would be good if we agree how to proceed."

Šarec said Slovenia would not oppose Mercator being transferred to Fortenova "under the condition that Slovenian suppliers remain within the system".

The government "can play its role within the bounds of the legislation and its jurisdiction... All the conditions must be fulfilled, bearing in mind that we are part of the European legal order. The Slovenian government will not oppose what is in line with the law."

While both Šarec and Medvedev acknowledged that economic cooperation was hampered by the sanctions introduced by the EU after Russia annexed the Crimea, both voiced the conviction that they would not significantly impact bilateral economic ties.

Šarec also said Slovenia and Russia did not see eye-to-eye on such issues, but stressed that dialogue needed to be preserved.

In a press release circulated after the meeting with Medvedev, Šarec's office emphasised that the two countries had diverse relations across a range of fields.

It said the prime ministers had discussed topical foreign policy issues and events in the international community, with Šarec stressing that Slovenia supported Ukraine's territorial integrity and the Minsk agreements.

He called for dialogue between all those involved and welcomed the recent prisoner exchange between Russia and Ukraine, stressing that it was necessary to build on the creation of trust.

"The prime ministers also touched on the situation in Western Balkans and the Middle Eastern region, focusing in particular on Syria. They exchanged views on the state of the Middle East peace process and the implementation of the Iranian nuclear deal," Šarec's office said.

As part of the visit, a monument to Slovenian soldiers who perished on Russian soil in both world wars was unveiled at Moscow's Victory Park, in a gesture seen as having great symbolic importance.

Both Šarec and Medvedev stressed the importance of history and the preservation of memory of Russian and Slovenian soldiers in their respective countries.

???? Predsednik vlade @sarecmarjan je v okviru uradnega obiska skupaj s predsednikom Vlade Ruske federacije @MedvedevRussiaE odkril spomenik slovenskim žrtvam v obeh svetovnih vojnah na območju današnje Ruske federacije. pic.twitter.com/Mh6Tyl3DsP

— Vlada Republike Slovenije (@vladaRS) September 10, 2019

STA, 29 August 2019 - Prime Minister Marjan Šarec, the leader of the ruling Marjan Šarec List (LMŠ), dismissed on Thursday Brane Kralj as the party's secretary general following a report against him which claims that Kralj had tried to exert staffing pressure. Šarec told the press he had not been aware of the controversial phone call.

The decision comes after the party launched a debate on the allegations, saying it would take action regarding the incident.

Kralj has been reported to the authorities by the chief supervisor of Uradni List, Irena Prijović, who claims that he called her and tried to secure a top job at the state-owned publisher of the Official Gazette for former MEP Igor Šoltes and exert staffing pressure on her.

After holding talks with Kralj, Šarec concluded that "the truth is somewhere in between and that it was not that brutal".

"I trust Kralj more than some other people who would have probably not reported the issue if the caller was someone of the right kind," said Šarec, adding that this was a "one person's word against another one's" incident.

According to the prime minister, Kralj did however behave in a naive, inexperienced and incorrect manner, with the phone call being inappropriate.

#Požareport - Ekskluzivno razkritje:
Kako je "vaški fant" Brane Kralj, generalni sekretar @StrankaLMS, v imenu države zahteval imenovanje @isoltesEP za direktorja Uradnega lista!
Več: https://t.co/QlonYERkEU @vladaRS @sarecmarjan pic.twitter.com/R6uJVwyxcQ

— BojanPožar (@BojanPozar) August 29, 2019

Allegedly, Kralj instructed Prijović on 21 August to appoint former Court of Audit president Šoltes as the gazette's new director and to report directly to him, bypassing Slovenian Sovereign Holding (SSH), the state asset custodian.

Prijović then reported him to the Corruption Prevention Commission as well as to SSH.

Kralj has told the STA he had indeed called the chief supervisor, but only to tell her that Šoltes, who had applied for the top post at Uradni List as part of a call for applications, was a good candidate.

However, Šarec highlighted today that Kralj as the party's secretary general could not have been lobbying on the state's behalf since only the government could do that.

"I respect Šoltes, but I do not like him that much to sacrifice a secretary general for him," said Šarec.

"Šoltes was not our candidate. It is definitely important to recruit people who are competent," added the prime minister, highlighting that any kind of staffing should be transparent.

In this case there was an open call for applications and it is completely inappropriate to try to exert influence in such a manner, said Šarec.

"Kralj will no longer be the LMŠ secretary general because we are putting our house in order. When such a situation occurs, one needs to deliver right decisions," said Šarec.

He added that such phone calls were probably common, but since there were not a lot of reports, the right people had to be calling. This incident could serve as an opportunity for the media to investigate other cases as well, he added.

Kralj will remain the party's member and will serve as a stand-in secretary general until the appointment of a new one, since, according to Šarec, the LMŠ cannot continue without its legal representative.

The prime minister believes Kralj, if called upon, will cooperate with the Corruption Prevention Commission, which launched the proceedings today.

SSH, which is processing Prijović's report as a priority, highlighted today that it was up to the supervisory boards of state-owned companies to decide on management appointment procedures in such companies.

STA, 28 August 2019 - The chief supervisor of the Official Gazette, Irena Prijović, has reported the secretary general of the senior coalition Marjan Šarec List (LMŠ) Brane Kralj to authorities, claiming he had instructed her to appoint former Court of Audit head and MEP Igor Šoltes as the gazette's new director. PM Šarec said he expects Kralj to provide an explanation.

 Prijović, who reported Kralj to the Corruption Prevention Commission and to state asset custodian SSH as the gazette's owner that had appointed her, confirmed for the STA on Wednesday the authenticity of a document in which she claims pressure had been exerted on her "regarding the choice of director".

The document, sent by her to the SSH and first published by the editor of the online tabloid Pozarerport Bojan Požar, says she had received on 21 August a call from Kralj who ordered her that "the state expects the appointment of Igor Šoltes as director of the Official Gazette".

#Požareport - Ekskluzivno razkritje:
Kako je "vaški fant" Brane Kralj, generalni sekretar @StrankaLMS, v imenu države zahteval imenovanje @isoltesEP za direktorja Uradnega lista!
Več: https://t.co/QlonYERkEU @vladaRS @sarecmarjan pic.twitter.com/R6uJVwyxcQ

— BojanPožar (@BojanPozar) August 29, 2019

Kralj is said to have also demanded that she "report on the staffing procedure directly to him without and before any communication with the SSH".

While she intends to provide additional explanations on Thursday, Prijović said that "it is now the turn of other institutions and those affected to take action".

In a brief first response, Šarec said he expected Kralj to provide an explanation regarding the accusations by Thursday.

Kralj later told the STA he had indeed called the supervisor, but only to tell her that Šoltes was a good candidate.

"I called Ms Irena Prijović and mentioned that Igor Šoltes might be a good candidate for director of the Official Gazette. I regret her perceiving that as pressure, the purpose of my call was merely to say that I thought of him as a good candidate as former president of the Court of Audit and DeSUS candidate in the EU election," Kralj said.

He would not comment on whether he will resign.

Šoltes had been the leading candidate of the junior coalition Pensioners' Party (DeSUS) in the May elections to the European Parliament, but failed to get re-elected. He applied for the top post at the Official Gazette as part of a call for applications.

The appointment procedure is still ongoing, with Prikovijić, who is also the executive director of the Slovenian Directors' Association, explaining the selection date had not yet been set.

STA, 18 August - Nearly two thirds of Slovenians believe that the government is doing a good job, suggests the August Vox Populi, while the senior coalition Marjan Šarec List (LMŠ) remains at the top of party rankings.

Commissioned by public broadcaster TV Slovenija and the newspaper Dnevnik on a monthly basis, the survey shows that 59.2% of the 700 people who were surveyed believe the government is doing a good job. The figure is 1.3 percentage points lower than in July.

On the other hand, 35.2% believe the opposite, with the share up three percentage points compared to previous month. Nonetheless, the LMŠ remains at the top of the party rankings with a support of 22.2% of respondents. The opposition Democrats (SDS) are in second place with 15.5%.

The Social Democrats (SD) are third with 10%, followed by the Left with 6.2%. The rest of the parties all remain under the 4% threshold of the National Assembly.

Despite the high support for the LMŠ and the government, Prime Minister Marjan Šarec has been dethroned in the politicians' popularity ranking by President Borut Pahor. MEP Tanja Fajon is in place three, followed by MEP Ljudmila Novak.

The survey also asked respondents about what they believe would be the best measures by the EU to help countries cope with the migration crisis. 67.7% said the EU should help source countries address problems that force people to leave.

Just over 36% believe that the EU should provide incentives to countries that would hold migrants back from the bloc, in Turkey, the Western Balkans and North Africa.

Another 33.1% believe the EU should beef up the control of its external borders and 17.7% believe that migrants should be given the option to request a work permit before even setting foot in the EU.

Nearly 14% believe that the EU should increase control on its internal borders, while 8.7% said that they should be able to request asylum in the EU before arriving here.

Assessing the work of the police, 41.8% said the force was doing a good job, 44.8% said the police were partly successful and 8.4% said they were doing a poor job.

Nearly half of the respondent (49.6%) believe that incentives to establish ad hoc militias to protect the border were unwarranted and 44.2% believe the opposite.

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