News roundup - Friday, 22 March

Golob and Fajon hail start of EU accession talks with Bosnia

BRUSSELS, Belgium/LJUBLJANA - PM Robert Golob and Foreign Minister Tanja Fajon welcomed on Thursday the decision of the European Council to okay the start of accession negations with Bosnia-Herzegovina. Golob said the country had taken an important step on its way into the European family. He added that the decision sent an important and encouraging message to the entire Western Balkans region as well, contributing to its stability, development and a better and more secure future.

Slovenia, Spain, Ireland and Malta "ready" to recognise Palestine

BRUSSELS, Belgium - The prime ministers of Slovenia, Spain, Ireland and Malta issued a joint statement expressing their readiness to recognise Palestine when the move could "make a positive contribution and the circumstances are right". Speaking to the press after the EU summit, Slovenia's PM Robert Golob said the process was two-tiered, pointing to the establishment of two independent countries and the change in Palestinian government. He said things could start moving forward in a matter of weeks, maybe a month. European Council President Charles Michel responded by saying it is a good idea if it means the start of a process that would support the Middle East peace process.

Brdo Process ministers discuss smuggling of illegal migrants

BRDO PRI KRANJU - Interior ministers from Brdo Process countries discussed migration in the Western Balkans and the EU through the lens of migrant smuggling. Cooperation is key in the fight against this issue, so the ministers agreed to strengthen it at the level of ministries and police, Slovenia's Boštjan Poklukar said at a joint news conference after the meeting. Poklukar met his Croatian and Italian counterparts, Davor Božinović and Matteo Piantedosi, yesterday and today the trio were joined by Montenegro's Danilo Šaranović, Kosovo's Xhelal Svecla, North Macedonia's Panče Toškovski and Olivier Onidi from the EU DG for Migration and Home Affairs.

Golob welcomes relief measures for small farmers

BRUSSELS, Belgium - PM Robert Golob welcomed the measures for relieving the administrative burden on farmers proposed by the European Commission, as he addressed the press after the EU summit in Brussels. He noted the short-term measures for small farms, which account for 80% of all farms in Slovenia. His comments come as the Commission proposed last week that farms smaller than ten hectares not be checked for compliance with environmental protection-related conditions for financial support from the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP).

Nova Gorica, Gorizia merging public transport schedules in 2025

TRIESTE, Italy - Foreign Minister Tanja Fajon and Friuli Venezia Giulia President Massimiliano Fedriga signed an agreement on cross-border public transport for the neighbouring towns of Gorizia and Nova Gorica as they co-chaired a session of a Slovenia-Friuli Venezia Giulia committee that also discussed minority representation in the region's legislature. A potential joint candidacy of Italy, Austria and Slovenia for the 2034 Winter Olympics was also discussed.

EU Commission official presents measures to tackle demographic change

LJUBLJANA - European Commission Vice President Dubravka Šuica presented a package of measures that will be available to EU countries to tackle demographic changes and their impact on society and the economy as she attended a conference on demographic changes in Slovenia and the EU, organised by Slovenian MEP Romana Tomc (EPP). Šuica said each country has its own specifics so measures that work in one country might not be effective in another. But a package addressing both birth rates and the longer life expectancy must be adopted. Šuica also met with Minister for Solidarity-based Future Simon Maljevac.

NSi event calls for change of government

LJUBLJANA - New Slovenia (NSi) called for a change in government at a panel debate featuring prominent experts on Thursday just as the fellow opposition Democratic Party (SDS) voiced the same demand at a rally in Ljubljana. The current government is destroying Slovenia, NSi leader Matej Tonin said. "Slovenia is in a deep political crisis, we have a strike wave and protests all over the country, completely incomprehensible legislation is being adopted, the economic situation is strained," he said.

SDS wants referendum on mandatory drug testing for officials

LJUBLJANA - The opposition Democrats (SDS) filed to parliament a proposal to call a consultative referendum on whether to regulate mandatory testing of state officials for illicit drugs. The referendum question would read: "Are you in favour of the National Assembly passing a law that will regulate mandatory testing of officials for illicit drugs". The motion comes after the SDS had submitted bills on mandatory drug testing for officials on two occasions before, both of which were rejected.

Locals and Središče ob Dravi mayor step up opposition to asylum centre

SREDIŠČE OB DRAVI - Around 200 residents held another meeting in Središče ob Dravi on Thursday evening to protest the government plans to erect an asylum centre unit there. The citizens' assembly was organised by Mayor Toni Jelovica, who announced an appeal at the Administrative Court, while civil disobedience has also not been ruled out, TV Slovenija and POP TV reported. Jelovica said he had been authorised by the municipal council to launch an administrative appeal against the government decision from last month under which two asylum centre units, one in Brežice and another in Središče ob Dravi, both near the Croatian border, would be set up.

Green financing explored at British-Slovenian event

LJUBLJANA - A British-Slovenian Chamber of Commerce event on the challenges of green financing brought together representatives from the business and financial sectors of Slovenia, Croatia, and the UK to discuss the role of green financing in the green transition and the challenges faced by this industry. UK Ambassador to Slovenia Tiffany Sadler highlighted the UK and City of London's leading role in green financing, expressing a desire to share experiences with others. Luke Davies, head of the sustainable finance group at Barclays Investment Bank, said there are more and more green finance tools.

Ukraine reconstruction and business with Kosovo also discussed in Planica

KRANJSKA GORA - Spirit Slovenia, the national agency for the promotion of investments and exports, organised a number of events on the sidelines of the FIS World Cup Ski Jumping competitions in Planica this week, among them a Slovenia-Kosovo business forum and a discussion on post-war reconstruction in Ukraine. Co-organised by the Economy Ministry and the two respective embassies, today's events explored the possibilities of cooperation between Slovenia and Ukraine and Kosovo, above all in terms of business. Economy Minister Matjaž Han also said at the Ukraine event Slovenia was determined to assist Ukraine both with humanitarian aid and in the military sense.

FEMS head urges govt to take talks on doctors' pay seriously

LJUBLJANA - Joao de Deus, head of the European Federation of Salaried Doctors (FEMS), visited the doctors' trade union Fides on Thursday, expressing concern that Slovenian doctors and patients might lose the privilege of public healthcare because the government is not taking the negotiations with Fides seriously. He said that FEMS unconditionally supports Fides in its efforts for better conditions in public healthcare.

Nearly half of Slovenians accepting of rainbow families, survey shows

LJUBLJANA - A public opinion survey has found that 45% of Slovenians have a positive attitude toward LGBTIQ-parented families, while 36% of the respondents said they had a negative attitude toward such families. Acceptance is highest among gen Z, according to the poll commissioned by the LGBT association Legebitra. Legebitra president Sebastjan Sitar presented the survey at a conference on rainbow families, the term describing families where one of the parents identifies as lesbian, gay, bisexual or transsexual etc.

Prices of residential real estate up 6.8% last year

LJUBLJANA - The prices of residential property were 6.8% higher in 2023 over 2022, in what is the smallest increase since 2021, the Statistics Office said. The number of transactions was down by around a quarter. In 2021, the prices rose by 15.8%, which was the largest growth in the last few years at the time.

Wages down in January

LJUBLJANA - The average Slovenian wage totalled EUR 2,318 gross or EUR 1,477 net in January, down slightly from December but up from January 2023, data from the Statistics Office shows. In nominal terms, the average gross pay in January was 1.3% lower than in December, while in real terms it decreased by 0.7%. The average net pay in January was down 3.4% from the month before in nominal terms and by 2.8% in real terms.

Bust of Polish poet Mickiewicz unveiled in Kranj

KRANJ - The municipality of Kranj and the Polish Embassy in Ljubljana unveiled a bust of the Polish poet Adam Mickiewicz in La Ciotat Park in Kranj on Thursday. Polish President Andrzej Duda also attended the event as he concluded a two-day visit to Slovenia. This is the seventh in a series of busts of contemporaries of Slovenian poet France Prešeren (1800-1849), which the municipality has been erecting since 2021.

Hydro plant museum to be part of European Culture Capital 2025

KANAL OB SOČI - The operator of hydro power stations on the Soča River in the west will open a technical heritage museum and launch an exhibition on renewables by March 2025, in time to be part of the Nova Gorica and Italy's Gorizia joint European Culture Capital project. The museum will be located in Doblar, one of the Soča power stations. Doblar is the oldest of the eight hydro plants on the Soča, and was build by the Italian authorities before WWII.

Peter Prevc wins ski flying World Cup event in Planica

PLANICA - Slovenian veteran Peter Prevc is ending his career on a high, winning the ski flying World Cup event at the home venue of Planica. He managed the longest jumps in both rounds to finish ahead of Austrian Daniel Huber and Norwegian Johann Andre Forfang. The victory was his 24th career win and keeps him in the game for the small crystal globe for the overall winner in ski flying. The 31-year-old will compete in the individual ski flying event on Saturday and the team event on Sunday before bidding farewell.

Tallest tree in Slovenia is 140 year-old, 67-metre Douglas fir

CELJE - The tallest tree in Slovenia was declared as International Forest Day was marked on Thursday in the Pečovnik forest, with the title going to a 140 year-old, 67.02-metre tall Douglas fir that grows in this forest south of Celje. A total of 210 large trees have been registered so far in the Pečovnik City Forest, where the first Douglas firs were planted in 1883.