Acting PM Ľudovít Ódor and President Zuzana Čaputová (source: TASR)
Welcome to your weekly commentary and overview of news from Slovakia:
The Ódor cabinet did not win parliament's confidence.
Rumours spread that Zuzana Čaputová will not run for another presidential term.
Hungary will protect Slovakia’s airspace.
If you have a suggestion on how to make this overview better, let me know at michaela.terenzani@spectator.sk.
Ódor government is now interim
Ľudovít Ódor and his ministers are now officially governing the country in an interim capacity after MPs’ refusal last week to express confidence in the cabinet, which was chosen by the president.
Some MPs did not miss the opportunity provided by the confidence debate to air a range of bilious and often unjustified criticisms of the president. These seemed principally designed to support their own political campaigns. Granting confidence, and with it full power to act as a government of experts for the next four or so months, would have been a welcome sign of maturity by MPs. But such an outcome was never likely, certainly not with the likes of Robert Fico and Igor Matovič leading the debate. Both criticised the programme statement that the Ódor government presented to MPs as vague and lacking ambition.
In reality, the government clearly stated its main aim as being to ensure the proper running of the state until the early general election due on September 30 (and probably for a few weeks beyond, until the next government is formed), to deliver a responsible budget, and to maintain a pro-European and pro-western foreign policy. The preparation and implementation of measures to help low-income groups under pressure from high inflation was another crucial objective.
