News roundup - Saturday, 6 January

Responsibility for peace invoked at WWII remembrance ceremony

SLOVENSKA BISTRICA - National Council President Marko Lotrič spoke about Slovenia's responsibility for peace as he addressed a ceremony in the Pohorje forests that paid tribute to a Partisan unit killed by Nazi forces in a battle 81 years ago. The memory of the Pohorje Battalion reminds us of what freedom and heroism is, and serves as a reminder of the horrors of war, those of the past and those that rage today almost in our neighbourhood, Lotrič said.

Canadian Grenier wins her second Golden Fox giant slalom

KRANJSKA GORA - Canadian Valerie Grenier won the women's World Cup giant slalom in rainy conditions in Kranjska Gora, her second career victory after she won her first one at the Golden Fox Cup here last year. Finishing 4th in the first run, Grenier put in a storming second run. Lara Gut-Behrami of Switzerland came in second (+0.37 sec) and Italian Federica Brignone (+0.51) third. The only Slovenian to qualify for the second run, Ana Bucik did not make it to the finish line. The 60th Golden Fox Cup will wrap up with a slalom on Sunday.

Energy utilities to boost security in wake of HSE hack attack

LJUBLJANA - The newspaper Dnevnik reported that the November cyber attack on Slovenia's state-owned power group HSE prompted plans to create a joint security operation centre for all state-owned energy companies, while HSE is to spend about half a million euros to upgrade its IT system. According to unofficial information obtained by Dnevnik, the joint security operation centre will be set up soon to monitor potentially suspicious developments on the servers of all state-owned energy companies around the clock.

Abandoned Stožice mall changes hands

LJUBLJANA - The decrepit unfinished commercial section of Ljubljana's Stožice sports complex has changed ownership after Rastoder, a banana trading and real estate company, sold it to a company based in Republika Srpska, Bosnia-Herzegovina for an undisclosed sum. The new owner, MG Mind owns KPL, a Ljubljana construction company that does most of its business for the municipality. Well-placed sources close to the seller say the buyer has ambitious plans for the Stožice property.

Delo poll shows 80% in favour of tax cuts

LJUBLJANA - Eight out of ten respondents (79%) in a poll run by Delo believe the government should cut taxes. Most of them favour cuts to personal income tax and over a third believe there is no need for real-estate tax. A large majority (73.5%) oppose higher excise duties, but even more (81.6%) are in favour of raising excise duties on alcohol and tobacco, yet they oppose higher taxes on sugary drinks (80.9%). The poll comes after government officials have announced tax reform that is to entail imposing tax on property.