Good evening. Here is the Wednesday, June 28 edition of Today in Slovakia - the main news of the day in less than five minutes.
Kollár to face no-confidence vote
Speaker of Parliament Boris Kollár, from the Sme Rodina party. (source: TASR - Jaroslav Novák)
On Wednesday, MPs closed the final session of the current term. However, they may still meet in extraordinary sessions. One such will take place just next week, on Tuesday.
At that session, Speaker of Parliament Boris Kollár (Sme Rodina) will face a no-confidence vote, after independent MPs managed to collect enough signatures to initiate a debate.
The MPs were reacting to reports – confirmed by Kollár himself – that he physically assaulted his ex-partner Barbora Richterová 12 years ago. Despite his admission, Kollár has said he believes the scandal was created to harm his party's chances in the parliamentary elections in September. As supposed evidence of this, he has pointed to the involvement of prominent lawyer Zoroslav Kollár (no relation), who he alleges is also Richterová’s ex-lover.
Sme Rodina also blames the Hlas party and its chair Peter Pellegrini, who is reportedly friends with Zoroslav Kollár. According to data from polling agencies, Hlas stands to benefit from the defection of part of Sme Rodina's voters, while Boris Kollár's scandals could threaten his party's chances of clearing the 5-percent threshold needed to ensure re-election.
Several parties have called on Kollár to step down, but he says he does not intend to do so. Observers say it is unlikely that sufficient MPs will vote to force his dismissal.
More on Boris Kollár's scandals:
Kollár is the lesser evil for Matovič. What is the problem with his past?
Girlfriends called on speaker of parliament in hospital, despite Covid visitor ban.
Kollár denies immorality towards Čistý Deň resident, admits communication.
A taste of Boris Kollár’s multi-layered graduation cake.
Coalition party paid tens of thousands to disinfo websites.
More stories from The Slovak Spectator website
ENVIRONMENT: Planned road construction that would have led to the felling of an important forest near Bratislava has been halted.
HEALTH: Dangerous new mosquito species have been reported in Slovakia.
BUSINESS: Our employees are our partners, says the chief people officer at Martinus, one of the largest bookshop chains in the country.
POSITIVE STORIES: This 96-year-old man is Slovakia's oldest practising doctor – and here's why he has not quit yet.
ARCHAEOLOGY: A rare burial site was found on the grounds of a future Volvo factory. Preparations for the factory are almost complete.
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FEATURE STORY FOR WEDNESDAY
An alternative to commercially grown flowers
(source: Jana Liptáková)
When buying a bouquet in a traditional flower shop, some blooms may have travelled as much as tens of thousands of kilometres. However, exquisite flowers can be grown, ecologically and sustainably, in Slovakia.
One piece of evidence is a small flower farm near Bratislava launched by Daniela Baños and her husband Hernan, who is originally from Argentina.
EVENT FOR TOMORROW
Viva Musica! festival opens with classical concert
This year, Slovakia commemorates the 30th anniversary of its independence. The opening concert of the 2023 Viva Musica! festival is celebrating that fact with a selection of classical pieces from both Slovakia and the Czech Republic.
The concert will take place in the Great Evangelical Church on Panenská Street, near the Presidential Palace, at 20:00. Admission starts at €10. For more information about the festival, including its programme, click here (in English).
In other news
Had an election taken place at the turn of May and June, the Smer party would have emerged in first place, with 18 percent of the vote, followed by Hlas (14.1 percent) and Progressive Slovakia (11.6 percent). These were the results of a poll carried out by the Median SK agency. Other parties that would make into the parliament include the extremist Republika, OĽaNO, Sme Rodina, SaS and the Christian Democratic Movement (KDH).
In relation to the turmoil in Russia over the weekend, Slovakia's Security Council says it does not perceive any increased risk to the security of Slovakia and Slovaks. However, the council continues to advise against travelling to Russia.
Slovak youth is being radicalised, especially in the online space. According to Prime Minister Ľudovít Ódor, this concerns individual cases and does not involve cooperation between several people or the formation of groups. The police have thwarted several incidents at schools and need to monitor the situation in more detail, he said.
The Slovak government approved an updated contingency plan for dealing with a potential mass influx of Ukrainians to Slovakia in the event of an escalation of the war in their country.
Thirty pediatricians from Ukraine, who have successfully passed aptitude tests for the medical profession, will work in Slovakia.
WEATHER FOR THURSDAY
Cloud cover will continue, with occasional rain and thunderstorms, especially in the north and east of Slovakia. Daytime temperatures of between 22°C and 26°C, rising to 28°C in the southwest, are expected. There will be a light breeze. (SHMÚ)
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