Archive of articles - January 2008

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Weakening USD caused SPP loss but reduced foreign debt

SDKÚ-DS MP and former finance minister Ivan Mikloš on January 30 defended the 2002 privatization of the Slovak Gas Industry (SPP).

MPs postpone voting on Lisbon Treaty

During the parliamentary session on January 30, Coalition MPs supported the proposal by Smer-SD MP Jana Laššáková to postpone the voting on the Lisbon Treaty until January 31 at 5 p.m. Shortly before that, however, the coalition voted down a proposal by Opposition SDKÚ-DS MP Stanislav Janis to postpone the voting, following which the Opposition MPs left the chamber. In order for the treaty to be ratified, it needs the support of three-fifths of parliament, i.e. 90 MPs. Given that there are only 85 governing-coalition lawmakers, support from at least five Opposition MPs is essential. TASR

EC: Slovakia needs more structural reforms and stricter fiscal policy

Slovakia must carry out further structural reforms and introduce stricter fiscal discipline if it wants to adopt the Euro on January 1, 2009, an evaluation of the country's convergence plan published by the European Commission (EC) on January 30 states.

Kašický formally resigns; Baška new Defence Minister

President Ivan Gašparovič on January 30 accepted the resignation of Defence Minister František Kašický (Smer-SD) and accepted Prime Minister Robert Fico's proposal to appoint State Secretary of the Defense Ministry Jaroslav Baška to the post. The proposal to dismiss Baška as State Secretary in preparation for this move was approved earlier in the day.

President calls for compromise on Lisbon Treaty

Speaker of Parliament Pavol Paška of the ruling party SMER-SD convened a

Gašparovič appoints new Defence Minister

On January 30, Slovak President Ivan Gašparovič accepted the resignation of Defence Minister František Kašický and appointed Jaroslav Baška (32) to the post.

Cabinet approves a draft amendment to the Law on Postal Services

At its regular meeting on January 30, the Slovak Cabinet approved an amendment to the law on postal services, submitted by a group of parliamentary deputies for the Slovak National Party (SNS), that adjusts the extent of postal exclusivity in order to curb circumvention of current law.

NBS: Macroeconomic development favourable, rates unchaged

It is possible to regard Slovakia's current and expected macroeconomic development as favourable, central bank (NBS) governor Ivan Šramko said following the NBS bank board session on January 29. Due to its current mid-term prediction, the NBS on Tuesday decided to retain the key interest rates without change. Šramko defended the decision by saying mid-term prediction wasn't much different from the previous one when it came to the outlook on demand pressures, and that the rise of inflation was due to externalities which currency policy cannot influence.

Jarjabek not ruling out comments on Press Act

Coalition Smer-SD MP Dušan Jarjabek said following the Parliamentary Committee for Culture and Media session on January 29 that he assumed the Government's proposed Press Act would be fine-tuned in a second reading based on MPs' comments. In his opinion, proposals from publishers could also be entertained, assuming that the result will represent an agreement rather than pressure or extortion.

Fico: Coalition will hold on, Opposition has to decide on voting for treaty

The Coalition will perhaps wait for the Opposition's decision to support ratification of the Treaty of Lisbon, Prime Minister Robert Fico hinted on January 29, speaking in Parliament. He repeated his words from Monday, 28, that what the Opposition is doing is nothing short of "basement racketeering", and that the Government will never yield to it. "Eighty MPs representing the governing Coalition are ready to vote whenever the Opposition realizes that they have to do so one way or the other," Fico said to close his speech.

IES: Confidence in industry lowest since February 2006

The Index of Economic Sentiment (IES), which indicates levels of confidence in various sectors of the economy, fell by 0.5 points month-on-month in January 2008 to 100.6 points, the Statistics Office reported on January 29.

Parliament debates before ratification of the Lisbon Treaty

Slovak Parliament launched a debate on the European Union's Lisbon Treaty this afternoon. Though the opposition announced it would not take part in the debate unless a wider consensus was reached on the governmental draft press bill, its MPs did not propose to omit the treaty from the agenda. The initiative to remove the draft press bill from the agenda of the ongoing session ultimately failed.

Two of six PPP applicants continue in D1 highway tender

Two of six applicants have been short-listed in a tender for the construction and operation of five selected stretches of the D1 highway between Martin and Prešov within the first package of planned public-private partnership (PPP) highway projects.

Fiscal policy to refocus on budgetary expenditures

After years of reporting tax revenues above projected levels, the focus of the Cabinet's fiscal policy is moving to budgetary expenditures, according to Finance Ministry State Secretary František Palko.

Slovak Prime Minister receives U.N. Secretary General

Slovakia's Prime Minister, Robert Fico, met with U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon in Bratislava on Monday, January 28. He voiced his support for the efforts of Ban Ki-moon to increase the effectiveness and significance of the United Nations worldwide. He stressed that Slovakia would devote its attention to reforming the security sector, which Slovakia initiated as one of the non-permanent members of the U.N. Security Council.

Job interest highest in Bratislava

On January 28, SME reports that despite higher investments in Central and Eastern Slovakia, the Bratislava region still registers the highest number of job offers. However, interest in jobs abroad has been diminishing. This development is the result of the strengthening crown. Most job offers were registered in the Bratislava region last year.

Opposition links Lisbon Treaty support with Press Bill compromise

On January 28 all three parliamentary opposition parties agreed to ask Speaker of Parliament Pavol Paška to withdraw the draft press bill, as well as the draft reform treaty on the European Union signed in Lisbon in December from the agenda of today’s parliamentary session. Following the opposition leader’s meeting, KDH Chairman Pavol Hrušovský announced that if Paška turned a blind eye to this request, opposition MPs would not attend the parliamentary discussion on the Lisbon Treaty. To ratify the Lisbon Treaty, a constitutional majority of ninety deputy votes is required. This means that the treaty can be passed only with the support of a part of the opposition.

Heat producers continue to negotiate higher prices with URSO

The Slovak Association of Heat Producers (SZVT) will continue negotiating new heat prices with the Regulatory Office for Network Industries (URSO). However, their current calculations indicate that heat prices should increase up to 3.5 percent from March 1, the chairman of SZVTs' board of directors, Miroslav Obšívaný told SITA. "At the moment we are calculating and analyzing price proposals of natural gas we have obtained from gas utility Slovenský Plynárenský Priemysel (SPP). The stated heat price increase would partly eliminate growth in natural gas prices. Nevertheless, we will negotiate heat prices with the regulatory authority on Friday," added Obšívany.

Fico has three nominations

A replacement for the outgoing Defense Minister František Kašický, who resigned due to inflated tenders announced by his department is known, writes the economic daily Hospodárske noviny.

Bishop Gojdič saved more than 1,500 Jews

The Hospodárske noviny reports that nine Slovaks received posthumous Just Among the Nations (Vad Yashem) awards from the state of Israel. Among the awardees is Bishop Pavel Peter Gojdič, who directly or indirectly saved more than 1,500 Jews. SITA

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