STA, 29 June 2022 - MPs rejected on Wednesday the Democrats' (SDS) motion for a referendum on the opposition party's own legislative proposal to scrap the compulsory subscription fee for public broadcaster RTV Slovenija. Also voted down was the SDS's proposal to have the government as opposed to parliament appoint the state's supervisors at the STA.

The RTVS motion for a consultative referendum, put forward with the argument that the broadcaster had lost up to 250,000 viewers in the past decade and that people should decide on their own if and how much subscription to pay, was rejected in a 54:28 vote.

While the SDS and the fellow opposition New Slovenia (NSi) argued the EUR 12.75 monthly fee was higher in Slovenia than in some other European countries and the efficacy of RTVS poorer, the Culture Ministry warned the changes sentinelled significant financial consequences and would prevent the provision of information in line with public interest.

The government labelled the referendum proposal unacceptable, saying the aim of the idea's proponents was to financially ruin the public broadcaster.

Meanwhile, the National Assembly also rejected the SDS's proposal for changes to the act on the Slovenian Press Agency (STA).

In line with the changes, the government and no longer parliament would appoint four of the STA's supervisors, while the changes would also affect rules governing the agency's income from copyrighted photos.

MPs voted 54:22 against the proposal, with the coalition arguing that it ran counter to its commitment for changes to media legislation that would reduce political influence, boost the independence of public media and secure stable funding for content that is in public interest.

The government had moreover argued that the proposal was not based on studies concerning the agency's execution of its public service and market activities and lacked an assessment of the impact, especially on the STA's financial situation.

A number of other opposition-filed legislation proposals were rejected in parliament today, including an SDS motion addressing rules on the awarding of public licences to pharmacies deemed unconstitutional in some respects by the Constitutional Court.

STA, 18 May 2022 - The Democrats (SDS) have tabled a motion to call a consultative referendum on the proposed changes to the government act, the National Assembly said. The SDS opposes an increase in the number of ministries and would like to give the government more "time to think about" government formation. This could delay the process by a month.

Under the proposed changes, the new government would have 19 ministries and one minister without portfolio, which would according to the emerging coalition of the Freedom Movement, Social Democrats (SD) and the Left boost efficiency and responsiveness.

The incumbent government of Janez Janša has 14 ministries and three without portfolio.

Freedom Movement MP Tamara Vonta said during today's debate in parliament on the changes that the new government would have three ministries more but that did not mean more spending.

There will also be no additional hiring in contrast to what the incumbent government is doing by offering a few hundred jobs in public administration just before leaving office, she said.

SDS deputy group head Danijel Krivec said the number and division of ministries had been made "based on the interests of parties and individuals" from the future coalition.

He said certain ministries were being "artificially divided, merged and transferred". He was particularly critical of the ministry for solidarity-based future, which he finds "artificially created and confusing".

This was echoed by Vida Čadonič Špelič from New Slovenia (NSi). She said every coalition had the right to form a government but that the NSi still disagreed with such increase in the number of ministries.

Lena Grgurevič from the Freedom Movement replied that the majority of voters had supported the party's programme and the proposed changes were a step towards implementing the desired model of managing the state.

Commenting on the referendum motion, the head of the SD deputy group, Jani Prednik, said this was "blatant misbehaviour" and a negation of the will of the people, who "said no to such politics in the April general election".

Speaking on the sidelines of today's parliament session, Prednik noted that every emerging coalition had the opportunity to form a government, pick the number of ministers and set its course, which was what the first 100 days were for.

"The current opposition is misbehaving and is already showing the modus operandi it had been displaying for four years, which we find unacceptable, and probably they are showing they are not happy with the election result, but sooner or later they will have to accept it."

The three coalition partners would like to form the government by 3 June, but now that the referendum motion has been filed, 30 days must pass before the National Assembly can vote on the motion and only then can changes to the government act be put to a vote.

According to Prednik, this could mean that the formation of the government will be delayed or that it will be formed under the existing government act and then rearranged later in line with the proposed changes.

Prednik thinks it is not very likely that President Borut Pahor would be asked to put forward the prime minister candidate later than planned, so the National Assembly is expected to vote on the prime minister next Wednesday as planned.

The coalition partners are yet to decide on future steps, he said.

This move is similar to the 33 legislative motions that were filed at the parliament's maiden session, said Mojca Šetinc Pašek, an MP for the Freedom Movement.

She believes these procedural blockades are something constitutional experts should deal with.

Freedom Movement head Robert Golob is scheduled to comment on the matter later this afternoon.

The head of the Left deputy group, Matej Tašner Vatovec, said stalling was the plan of the outgoing government to "buy time to continue its corrupt conduct". He also pointed to "staffing that is under way".

STA, 18 May 2022 - Under amendments to the RTV Slovenija act sponsored by the opposition Democrats (SDS), the public broadcaster's license fee would no longer be mandatory. The new coalition opposes the proposal, saying it would ruin RTV Slovenija, whereas the other opposition party, New Slovenia (NSi), supports it.

Since the SDS filed a motion today to call a referendum on the changes to the legislation, the bill's consideration will take more time than initially thought.

In addition to the license fee becoming voluntary, the amount payable would be determined by citizens themselves, said Alenka Jeraj from the SDS as she presented the proposal at Wednesday's session of the National Assembly. According to her, the broadcaster is not as credible and objective as it should be and has lost 200,000-250,000 viewers in the past ten years.

The emerging coalition of the Freedom Movement, Social Democrats (SD) and Left finds the proposal an attempt to undermine RTV Slovenija in a financial sense as well.

They agree that the RTV Slovenija act needs to be changed, but in a way to depoliticise the broadcaster and ensure editorial autonomy, said Predrag Baković from the SD in parliament. They have also tabled their own version of the bill to achieve this, he added.

STA, 12 April 2022 - Prime Minister Janez Janša told the parliamentary inquiry looking into the financing of political parties on Tuesday that his Democratic Party (SDS) was not financed from abroad or from illegal sources. He also denied that the EUR 450,000 loan taken from a Bosnian citizen in 2017 was money laundering.

It was a continuation of the interview with the prime minister and president of the ruling SDS party after a session held on 3 March.

At the time, Janša denied any influence of the SDS in the companies running the Nova24TV news television channel and its web portal nova24tv.

He told the MPs that the SDS had not influenced in any way in the past the operation of NTV24, as it was a limited liability company, or the operations of Nova Hiša, which runs the web portal.

Today, the prime minister was asked about the EUR 450,000 loan taken by the SDS from Bosnian citizen Dijana Đuđić by several members of the parliamentary inquiry.

Marko Bandelli of the Alenka Bratušek Party (SAB) noted that the inquiry had found that Đuđić had been suspected of abusing the tax system, falsifying and destroying tax documents and facilitating pyramid schemes.

Janša confirmed that he as the SDS president had signed the loan taken out from Đuđić, as stipulated by the party's statute at the time. The party did not out the loan abroad, but "in Slovenia from a person who had a Slovenian tax number," he said.

"A notary confirmed that [the person] acted in accordance with the rules," Janša said, adding that the loan had been investigated by all possible authorities and institutions.

The only irregularity that was found was the amount of loan, due to which the party paid a fine, while "nothing else was disputable here, there was no money laundering or any other criminal act."

Janša said this was the first and last time that he met Đuđić. "There was no Snežič in between," he said when asked by Jani Möderndorfer of the Marjan Šarec List (LMŠ) to confirm or deny that the deal had been proposed by tax advisor Rok Snežič.

Regarding allegations that the SDS is financed from Hungary and that Hungarian money was used directly for the party's campaign, he noted that it was private capital and that private companies from EU could invest money wherever they wanted.

Janša noted that EUR 800,000 in Hungarian capital had been invested in Nova24TV, while foreign capital investment in the commercial broadcaster POP TV amounted to EUR 200 million.

"These are the relationships we are talking about. EUR 200 million in capital in another media outlet that is attacking our party," he added.

The prime minister confirmed that he had become a co-owner of Nova Hiša, which runs the nova24tv web portal, and that his influence on the media outlet was proportional to his stake in the company - 0.1%.

STA, 11 April 2022 - With a fortnight to go to the general election in Slovenia, the Freedom Movement is in the lead at 19.8%, 1.2 percentage points ahead of the ruling Democrats (SDS) in a poll conducted by Mediana for the newspaper Delo and commercial broadcaster POP TV.

The party of the ousted energy exec Robert Golob has gained 3.1 percentage points from March as the SDS added 1.8 points.

The opposition Social Democrats (SD) continue in third at 7.9%, down 1.5 points from March, ahead of the Left, which slipped back 1.4 points to 5.8%.

New Slovenia (NSi), the SDS's coalition partners, gained half a point to 5.5% and the LMŠ, the party of former PM Marjan Šarec, improved by 0.8 points to 4.6%.

Teetering on the verge of parliamentary threshold are five parties; the SAB of the former PM Alenka Bratušek is currently at 2.9% and Connecting Slovenia, an alliance that includes the coalition party Concretely, polled at 2.8%.

The non-parliamentary Pirate Party and Our Land of former Agriculture Minister Aleksandra Pivec both polled at 2.4% and the opposition National Party (SNS) mustered 2.3%.

The proportion of the decided respondents rose to 80% from 60% in March. Just over one in ten is still undecided (11.7%), 2.9% would not say which party they would vote for and 3.9% would vote for none.

Considering only those who are likely to cast their ballots, the Freedom Movement is projected to win 22.5%, the SDS 20.2%, the SD 9.5% and the Left 7.9%. The only other parties projected to make it to parliament are the NSi (5.8%) and the LMŠ (5%).

Asked about the current government's job, 48% rate it as negative or very negative and 27.7% rate it as positive or very positive with 22% giving it an average score.

President Borut Pahor remains the most popular politicians ahead of Robert Golob and three ministers: Janez Poklukar (health), Jernej Vrtovec (infrastructure) and Anže Logar (foreign affairs).

The poll was conducted among 1,027 respondents between 4 and 7 April.

STA, 27 January 2022 - Rok Snežič, a tax adviser with alleged links to Prime Minister Janez Janša, would not answer questions as he appeared before the parliamentary inquiry into alleged unlawful financing of Janša's Democratic Party (SDS) on Thursday. Nor did his wife Klavdija Snežič, formerly the largest shareholder of Nova24TV.

Rok Snežič told the inquiry from the outset that he would either decline to answer questions or respond by saying he did not remember, and then went on to explain he was not a public office holder and was not obliged to answer to the inquiry as it was not a court.

He would neither confirm nor deny his socialising with Janša on the ground that he did not remember. He said he was not under obligation to explain his relationship with his acquaintances or friends when asked about his links to Dijana Đuđić and other persons allegedly involved in contentious financial transactions.

Snežič served a sentence for tax evasion in the past, at the same prison that Janša was incarcerated in prior to the 2014 election before his sentence in the Patria defence bribery cases was quashed by the Constitutional Court.

Asked about Klemen Nicoletti, an owner of Majbert Pharm, the company picked by the state in late 2020 to supply roughly EUR 1 million worth of rapid tests for mass coronavirus screening, Snežič said he had nothing to do with "Instagram boys" and could not be their friend as he did not have an Instagram account.

He also claimed not remembering when asked about his advertising agency's dealings with the state-owned companies HSE, TEŠ and Pošta Slovenije.

He said he had been nicknamed tax evasion doctor because such was the subject of his doctoral thesis. He repeatedly urged the inquiry to present material evidence on his alleged business dealings.

Klavdija Snežič, who was accompanied by her legal counsel, invoked a provision allowing witnesses in parliamentary inquiry to decline answering questions if that could harm them or their relatives.

MPs inquired about her role as a former largest shareholder of Nova24TV, a media outlet with ties to the SDS. Jani Möderndorfer, an MP for the Marjan Šarec List (LMŠ), said she borrowed the money to buy the shares in cash from entrepreneurs Dražen Kuča.

The latter has failed for the third time to respond to an invitation for an interview, thus Möderndorfer proposed he be subpoenaed, which was endorsed.

Damjan Damjanovič, a former director of Nova24tv, also failed to appear for the interview, citing poor health.

The inquiry is looking into alleged money laundering at the NKBM bank by foreign citizens and their affiliates and alleged illegal financing of the SDS and suspected dealings of media publishers owned by the party prior to the 2018 election.

STA, 19 July 2021 - The latest Vox Populi poll, commissioned by the dailies Dnevnik and Večer, shows that the rating of the Janez Janša government has hit its lowest point so far. The ruling Democrats (SDS) nevertheless remain in the lead, followed by the opposition SocDems and the Left.

The government's rating is at an all-time low with 71.9% of respondents rating it is not doing its job well, 5.8 points more than last month. The government's work was rated as successful by 26% of respondents, which is 3.8 points less than in June, shows the poll released on Monday.

The SDS polled at 18.2%, down 0.9 points over the month before. The Social Democrats (SD) are in second place with 12,7%, up from 12.1% in June, trailed by the opposition Left in third at 10.1%, a three-point gain month-on-month.

The opposition Marjan Šarec List (LMŠ) is in fourth place with 9.2%, gaining 0.4% on June, followed by the coalition New Slovenia (NSi), which lost almost two percentage points to 4.7%. The opposition Alenka Bratušek Party (SAB) got 3.6%, almost the same as in June.

The party rankings are completed by the People's Party (SLS) at 1.1%, the Pensioners' Party (DeSUS) at 0.7%, the National Party (SNS) at 0.6% and the Modern Centre Party (SMC) at 0.3%. All of them saw their ratings slip.

The share of undecided voters decreased by almost a full percentage point, from 30.5% to 29.6%, and the share of those who would not cast their ballot at all was the same as in June.

According to the poll, if there were an election now, the SDS would secure 28 seats in parliament, the SD 19, the Left 15, the LMŠ 14, the NSi seven and the SAB five.

Former NSi president and MEP Ljudmila Novak (EPP/NSi) remains the most popular Slovenian politician. President Borut Pahor, who had been a long-standing favourite in this category, is now in second place, followed by the Speaker of the National Assembly Igor Zorčič.

The poll was conducted by pollster Ninamedia between 13 and 15 July among 700 respondents.

STA, 19 June 2021 - Janez Janša won another term at the helm of the Democratic Party (SDS) at a party congress in Slovenske Konjice on Saturday. He was endorsed by 650 of the 656 delegates as the only candidate for party head.

STA, 25 May 2021 - The ruling Democrats (SDS) have defended a draft resolution they plan to adopt at the upcoming congress and which warns about the possibility of civil war and leftist extremism, as the opposition stepped up criticism of a document they claim constitutes scaremongering.

"If anyone thinks advocacy of constitutionality and respect for the Slovenian constitution is controversial, there's something wrong with them," Branko Grims, a senior lawmaker for the SDS, told the press on Tuesday.

The SDS wants to preserve the constitutional order, democracy and security in Slovenia, and that is the only clear message of the resolution, he said.

The statement comes after several media leaked a resolution the party plans to adopt at its congress in June and which warns of the dangers of the opposition Left, extremists, leftists and the escalation of tensions. [See more here]

It says that Slovenia has been experiencing street violence perpetrated by extremists who are backed by leftist political forces and often have ties with foreign movements, describing the SDS a party that promotes democracy, the rule of law and high standards to protect human rights.

Grims alleged the Left plans "to drive businessmen into the sea with bayonets", noting that "those who agree with that and tolerate that are driving Slovenia into civil war".

He was referring to a manifesto widely circulated by government supporters on social media that was attributed to the Left but which the Left said was completely fabricated and had nothing to do with the party.

"The Left should prove what is true and what is not true," he said, adding that a Left MP had posted that manifesto on his Facebook page.

Asked whether such resolutions will not end up worsening political tensions, Grims said the political arena was being "heated up by leftists who have gone crazy on the streets of Ljubljana".

The resolution was already condemned yesterday, and the opposition parties stepped up their criticism today.

"The deeper he is in [trouble], the more radical his moves, his latest being scaremongering with civil war," Left leader Luka Mesec said about the SDS leader, Prime Minister Janez Janša.

He sees the resolution as a sign he and the party are afraid of the Left and were trying to demonise it.

"Unfortunately, we're in a country where the prime minister and his party depict a topsy-turvy world, where those of us who are on the front lines defending democracy are becoming perpetrators in the eyes of these people - the people who are actually demolishing institutions."

LMŠ leader Marjan Šarec said the SDS messed up everything and was now resorting to ideology, noting that such manifestos are primarily designed to consolidate the party.

"Talking about the possibility of civil war is utterly abhorrent. We know the situation is not the way they are trying to depict it. The fact is that 75% of the people did not vote for the SDS and the nation is far from split. The majority of the nation disagrees with the current state," he said.

Social Democrat (SD) president Tanja Fajon described the resolution as "absurd, dangerous and worrisome, because it does not warn against civil war, it is menacing".

"Janša is indicating a very dangerous course for the country's future ... he's putting himself above the Constitution," according to Fajon.

SAB leader Alenka Bratušek said her party could not believe that the SDS "can really be so crazy". The party is convinced this is a diversionary tactic to divert attention from the "disastrous state of public finances, public health and foreign policy".

SDS warns about leftists, extremists in draft manifesto

STA, 24 May 2021 - The ruling Democrats (SDS) warns of the dangers of the opposition Left, extremists, leftists and the escalation of circumstances in one of the five draft manifestos sent to its local branches ahead of the party congress, which is expected to be held on 19 June.

The SDS sent the drafts to the party's municipal and city committees, including a draft resolution titled For Defence of Constitutional Foundations of the Slovenian State, the news portal 24ur.com reported.

The draft warns of the above-mentioned dangers, pointing to an attack on Slovenia's democracy. It says that Slovenia has been experiencing street violence perpetrated by extremists who are backed by leftist political forces and often have ties with foreign movements.

The proposed manifesto analyses the political situation in Slovenia, describing the SDS as the only Slovenian party with everything in order and long-term political organisations in place. The party finds these to be the attributes of other serious parties worldwide.

What also sets the SDS apart from other Slovenian parties is the fact that it is capable of leading the country at any time, the draft reads.

There are too many impromptu parties in Slovenia, while the traditional ones are dying out, the SDS thinks. As the launch of new parties and new faces is mainly common for the left pole of the political spectrum, there are many cases of completely incompetent appointments at the governmental level with grave consequences, says the party.

The SDS meanwhile sees itself as a party that promotes democracy, the rule of law and high standards to protect human rights.

The party says that Slovenian democracy has not matured, noting that the situation has been worsening since the "extremist political party Left" made it to parliament in 2014.

According to the SDS, the Left's programme is the first by any party or movement that is directly at odds with the Constitution.

Moreover, the SDS says that the extremists' supporters could be found in EU institutions as well, particularly the European Commission and European Parliament, where they "plot against the [Slovenian] government and prime minister and accuse him of curtailing media freedom".

Noting that it will safeguard democracy and the Constitution, the party warns of the risk of the escalation in the polarisation, including the risk of a civil war.

Responding to the draft, the Left said that the SDS was again painting a picture that had nothing to do with reality.

"While they themselves with their government are bringing down the media, democratic institutions and courts, they portray themselves as democrats in the manifesto, as a party that would defend democracy. But facts speak for themselves," says the Left, warning that Slovenia is turning into an authoritarian regime.

"To depict themselves as saviours they naturally need scapegoats. That is why they pointed to the Left in the manifesto," the Left adds, describing itself as a thorn in the SDS's side that is not afraid of the ruling party's intimidation and manipulation and will do all it can to unseat this party, "which is growing into a criminal organisation", via an election as soon as possible.

Tanja Fajon, the leader of the opposition Social Democrats (SD), has also responded, saying that "the SDS is not cautioning against a civil war, but threatening with it to legitimatise in advance repression against those who think differently".

"There is only one option: peace. There is only one strategy: cooperation. There is only one solution for Slovenia: early election," she said.

STA, 11 March 2021 - The Maribor Higher Court has dismissed a damages claim by the ruling Slovenian Democratic Party (SDS) against the state over the Patria defence corruption trial a second time in a retrial, in a judgement that has become final, the newspaper Delo reported on Thursday.

The party claimed over EUR 886,000 in pecuniary damages and interest because its leader, incumbent PM Janez Janša, was sentenced to prison ahead of the 2014 general election over a 2006 defence procurement deal. His and co-defendants' convictions were overturned by the Constitutional Court in 2015.

The party argued it sustained irreparable damage through the conviction, alleging that "unlawful conduct" by the judiciary in the Patria case impacted on the party's results in the general elections in 2011 and 2014 as the events related to the trial coincided with the election campaign and elections. Janša was ordered to report in prison shortly before the snap election in 2014.

However, the Maribor Higher Court dismissed the claim again telling Delo that the judgement had become final on 5 January and enforceable on 25 February.

The Supreme Court ordered a retrial in the case last year when it annulled the Higher Court's decision to uphold the May 2018 decision by the Ljubljana District Court to dismiss the claim on the grounds that the plaintiff failed to prove unlawful conduct by judges in the trial.

The Supreme Court held that the second-instance court had failed to provide sufficient explanation why it thought the plaintiff had failed to disprove the District Court's judgement that court actions in the Patria case were in agreement with the standards in "corruption" cases valid at the time.

Janša also claims EUR 900,000 in damages himself from the state, a former prosecutor and four judges involved in the Patria case. His claim has been moved by the Supreme Court from the district court in Celje to the one in Kranj, where Delo was told a decision in the case was not to be expected soon.

Meanwhile, co-defendants have already reached settlements with the state on their claims for wrongful imprisonment.

More on the Patria case