Slovak MPs on November 27 approved the amendment to the Social Insurance Act - that President Ivan Gašparovič returned back to Parliament – for a second time. The president returned the amendment because MPs previously approved two contradictory provisions, which led to vagueness. The amendment was supported November 27 by the necessary 76 MPs, with 56 MPs against it.
The amendment to the Social Insurance Act implements several significant changes. The most important is a temporary opening up of the second (capitalization) pension pillar during the first half of 2008, making it voluntary for graduates, or mothers on maternity leave, as well as extending the compulsory minimum period of both pension insurance and savings from the current 10 to 15 years. In October, MPs accidentally approved the possibility of a voluntary entry to the second pillar in the first half of the next year, and at the same time a ban on entering. Gašparovic recommended that Parliament approve the temporary opening of capitalization pillar, which the MPs managed to do today.
Opposition parties have objected to the proposed changes from the outset and organized a petition, which also has to be dealt with by Parliament. However, MPs will discuss it only by the end of the ongoing session, although the opposition unsuccessfully proposed to include it into discussion before the repeatedly discussed amendment to the legislation.
The original wording of the amendment that was submitted to Parliament by the Government was also opposed by coalition LS-HZDS. The party in October supported the amendment only after several amending proposals had been included in it. Today, the ĽS-HZDS again supported it. TASR
Compiled by Zuzana Vilikovská from press reports
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