November 14, 2018 - The cost of living in Ljubljana is a tricky subject, made more so to comparing it to the cost of living in another, very different city, to say nothing of the varied lifestyles folk lead, and how this changes as we get older. That said, such figures remain a subject of obvious interest to all those with a more international mindset, as they imagine what life would be like in London, Berlin, Tokyo, New York or Ljubljana. How far their current income and savings would go, and whether a move would require – or enable – significant changes in preferences, tendencies and habitual behaviors.

The cost of living in Ljubljana compared to other European capitals

It’s here the website Expatistan comes in handy, as it uses survey data (details here) to create a ready-reckoner for the relative expense of living abroad, as well as to provide details of the salaries associated with various jobs. While we can’t vouch for the exact precision of the answers, the results do seem to give a pretty good idea of how much it costs to live in Ljubljana compared to some other cities we’ve called home. Below you can see the details for a comparison of the costs of living in the Slovene capital with Paris.

Screenshots from Expatistan

As a further test of the system we entered a list of European capitals and a few other notable cities around the world to obtain the percentage difference in cost of living, with the results shown in the following table:

With hundreds of other cities in the system you can have hours of fun making comparisons and day-dreaming of a new career in a new town, as well as checking the relative salaries and looking for details of international schools, so if curious do look for more data at Expatistan.

Related: Find out the average pay for various jobs in Slovenia

STA, 14 November 2018 - NLB shares were listed on the Ljubljana and London stock exchanges on Wednesday, bringing the sale of 65% of Slovenia's leading bank via an initial public offering (IPO) to an end. By selling NLB, Slovenia has partly met its commitment to the European Commission to sell 75% minus one share in exchange for a bailout in late 2013.

As the state has retained a controlling 35% stake, US financial fund Brandes Investment Partners (7.6%) and the EBRD (6.3%) have emerged as the two largest private owners.

The state has sold almost 12 million shares or 59.1% of all shares of NLB at €51.50 per share to get almost €609m, but taking into account an over-allotment option the stake could increase to 65% (€669.5m).

The seller is making an additional 1.18 million NLB shares available pursuant to the over-allotment option. The shares will be kept on a separate fiduciary account and be made available 30 days after the listing to make deals to stabilise the price.

"We remain a Slovenian banking group," NLB chairman Blaž Brodnjak said at today's listing on the Ljubljana Stock Exchange (LJSE), which was accompanied by symbolic bell-ringing when trading opened in Ljubljana at 9:15 AM.

The bank's shares have also been listed in the form of financial instruments known as GDR on the London Stock Exchange. NLB has become the first Slovenian joint-stock company to be listed in London.

"The head and heart of NLB remain in Ljubljana," said Brodnjak, adding that a new era was beginning for the bank, as "we have been very limited in our operations for five years", referring to the restrictive measures set down by the Commission.

Under the commitment to the EU, Slovenia has to sell another 10% of NLB by the end of 2019. Until then, the bank will be subject to a set of measures the Commission has imposed to make sure NLB is not in a more favourable market position than its competitors.

Once all limitations are lifted, it will be a "great privilege and great responsibility" for the bank, Brodnjak assessed, labelling today's listing as "the most important day in the bank's history".

Until the end of 2019, the bank is banned from making acquisitions, having aggressive advertising campaigns and performing leasing services.

Moreover, since the stake sold this year will be less than 75% minus one share, the bank will also have to start procedures to sell NLB Vita, its insurance subsidiary.

Brodnjak however hopes that it will be possible to negotiate with the European Commission the elimination of the remaining limitations and requirements. He noted that European Commissioner for Competition Margrethe Vestager will pay a visit to Ljubljana soon.

He believes that under a majority private ownership, the bank will develop in the sense of corporate management and freedom of operation. The bank is in a very good shape and is a systemically important institution in another five countries.

The group is also present in Serbia, Montenegro, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Kosovo and Macedonia, and the bank will now be vying for the "title of a regional champion", for which it has potential as it is familiar with the history and culture of the region.

Finance Ministry State Secretary Metod Dragonja said that with the transaction, Slovenia had met the first, most important commitment to the European Commission.

"Slovenia has clearly shown that it respects the commitments given. The credibility that the state has gained by doing so will make a positive impact on the state's and bank's credit ratings," he added.

Lidija Glavina, the chairwoman of Slovenian Sovereign Holding (SSH), said that SSH would continue with the sale of the remaining shares by the end of 2019.

"Despite the very demanding situation on financial markets, internationally renowned financial investors have decided to buy," she said, adding that NLB nevertheless remained "an independent Slovenian financial institution".

SSH will be able to sell the remaining stake after a six-month moratorium. There will be no price range and procedures will be simplified. "We will be waiting to get the maximum out of it," Glavina announced.

LJSE chairman Aleš Ipavec added that it was "an important day for the Slovenian capital market", while he did not wish to comment on the price of the share.

"Some are not satisfied as it is allegedly too low. But the market will show soon how much the share is really worth," he added.

The listing ceremony was also attended by representatives of regulators, the financial sector and some companies, mostly those traded in the prime market.

Slightly more than €500,000 in turnover with the NLB shares has been generated so far, with the price standing around €55, which is €4.50 above the price fetched with the IPO.

NLB closed the day’s trading at €56.65, 5.15 above the IPO price.

Are you a foreign citizen who received a notification for the local election in Slovenia recently? No, this was not a mistake. All foreigners of age (18) with permanent residency in Slovenia have the right to vote in local elections, which also includes the right to run for office for anyone coming from an EU country.

For all first time voters, here are some voting basics.

Local self-government in Slovenia dates back to the 1948 March Revolution, with the first local representatives in Carniola elected in 1850. The system of local self-governance, which grants the inhabitants of the local communities the right to decide on essential part of local affairs of public relevance, was cancelled during one-party rule in 1955, and reinstalled again after Slovenian Independence in 1991.

In 1991, there were 60 municipalities, with the number growing over the years and reaching 212 today.

In each one of the 212 municipalities you will be voting for a mayor and a number of city councillors, the number of the latter depends on the number of citizens they represent in a certain locality. To inspect the list of candidates in your municipality, please click here.

On the mayoral ballot you will chose one person from the list by circling the number in front of the candidate’s name.

On the city councillors’ ballot, you can vote for up to as many candidates as there are councillors in a particular municipality. The number of councillors depends on the number of inhabitants. The instructions on the number of councillors you can vote for, as well as how to circle the number correctly, are usually also given in the polling booth or/and written on the ballot itself.

The election day is Sunday, November 18^th, polling stations open at 07:00 and close at 19:00. The address of your polling station is stated in your notification letter. There is a possibility to vote early, and when and where exactly is decided and declared by each of the municipalities.

Don't forget to bring your ID card, and if it’s your first time maybe take a picture when casting a ballot, to show your friends back home that you’re now a full member of Slovenian society.

STA, 13 November 2018 - The first edition of a database of the military victims of the First World War coming from the territory of present-day Slovenia has been finalised, featuring the names of 26,224 people who were either killed or went missing in the WWI campaigns.

The project, launched in the spring of 2015 and coordinated by the Institute of Contemporary History, involved 16 organisations and individuals from entire Slovenia.

The database was presented on Tuesday, with President Borut Pahor saying at the presentation that it was not a final list, as a number of relevant documents have not been examined yet and or were not available any more.

Historians have estimated that once the project is finalised, the number of victims in the database could approach the current general estimate of between 36,000 and 40,000 soldiers from the territory of present-day Slovenia.

The database, which will continue to be updated, is a product of the extensive volunteer work by researchers, museologists and others who had collected, prepared and processed the data for the period between 28 July 1914 and 4 November 1918.

The database is available here, although only in Slovene at the moment, and an analysis of certain data will also be published soon.

According to Mihael Ojsteršek of the Institute of Contemporary History, the biggest number of victims were born in 1895 or 1896. The youngest victims were born in 1902, and the oldest in 1858. The bloodiest year of the war was 1915.

The database, which was launched to mark the 100th anniversary of the end of the First World War, also looks to promote the sources of data from the war and encourage research work about the period.

On the anniversary, commemorative coins with the nominal value of three euro was also issued in Slovenia, available in the units of the DBS and NKBM banks and the Banka Slovenije central bank.

STA, 13 November 2018 - Several former political heavyweights are attempting comebacks in the upcoming local elections, some of them despite of scandals that seemed to have buried their political careers already. Standing out are Franc Kangler in Maribor, who resigned in the face of violent street protests, and Pavle Rupar in Tržič, who has served prison time.

Maribor

Kangler won the mayoral vote in Slovenia's second largest city Maribor in 2006 and 2010 but was then forced to resign in late 2012 amid violent mass protests triggered by his decision to erect automatic speed traps, which had been seen an attempt to skim money from the people at a time when the city was struggling with high unemployment.

He has had a prison sentence - which cost him his seat in the upper chamber of parliament and membership in the People's Party (SLS) - and a suspended prison sentence related to his mayoral activities quashed by the Supreme Court and is thus entering the election with a clean record.

The newspaper Večer recently reported that out of 21 cases brought against him by police and prosecution, 14 have already concluded in his favour. While sent into retrial, the major cases had wiretapping evidence excluded by the Supreme Court, making a conviction all but impossible.

However, what is very possible according to polls is Kangler's return to the mayor's office, which he said he gave up because the violent protests threatened the lives of police officers.

"A single police officer's life is worth more than mayorship," the 53-year-old, who started out as police officer himself, has said.

Tržič and Kočevje

Meanwhile, Rupar, a former member of the Democrats (SDS), is mounting a comeback attempt after serving a one-year prison sentence in 2014 over misuse of municipal funds.

Rupar, who ran Tržič (NW) for 12 years, fell from grace in 2006, when a recording was leaked of him attacking his alleged lover in an apartment he had failed to report to the Corruption Prevention Commission.

The 58-year-old, who became the first Slovenian MP to resign due to a criminal investigation against him, was later found guilty of several more counts of abuse of office.

"I paid for my sins, have gone through a lot and have learned from this," he says now, arguing locals have also started perceiving him differently than during the scandal period.

Some of the other comeback examples are less scandal-tinged but nevertheless noteworthy, including Janko Veber, who served four terms as the mayor of Kočevje (S) after 1994 and was also an MP between 1996 and 2018.

Veber's political career has been on a downward spiral ever since he was dismissed as defence minister in 2015 for having ordered the military intelligence service to conduct a national security analysis of a later shelved privatisation of Telekom Slovenije.

A former senior party member, Veber parted ways with the SocDems in early 2018 and formed his own party, Unity, which failed to make it to parliament in the June election.

Kamnik and Ptuj

An experienced local politician is also returning to the scene in Kamnik, where the mayoral seat was vacated by Marjan Šarec, the new prime minister.

Tone Smolnikar held the post for 16 years before Šarec and while he is relatively happy with the latter's performance, he is promising to do even better.

A comeback attempt is also being mounted by three-time Ptuj (NE) Mayor Štefan Čelan, defeated in 2014 by Miran Senčar, who will not be vying for a second term.

Also running in Ptuj is 28-year-old Andrej Čuš, who took over the non-parliamentary Greens after a clash with the SDS, which included an attempt to pin a cocaine scandal on him.

Destrnik, Ajdovščina and Videm

Another SDS defector, four-time MP Franc Pukšič, will try to revive his mayoral career in the tiny municipality of Destrnik (NE), which he ran for 18 years before losing the post in 2011 due to a new law preventing deputies to serve as mayors.

He made it to parliament in 2011 on the slate of the People's Party (SLS), but later parted ways with it.

The candidacies of two more former MPs have been raising eyebrows, one of them being 73-year-old Marjan Poljšak, whom most Slovenians remember for his eccentric speeches in parliament in the early 1990s.

Poljšak was defeated in Ajdovščina (SW) in 2014 after serving for 14 years. In 2018 he failed in his bid to get elected to parliament for United Slovenia, the fringe nationalist party led by Andrej Šiško, recently arrested for organising a self-styled militia.

Šiško, currently in detention, is running for the mayoral post in Maribor.

Then there is also Branko Marinič running for mayor in Videm (NE). Marinič resigned as an SDS MP in 2013 after being convicted to a suspended prison sentence over having somebody else, using a fake ID, take a German language exam for him.

All our local election coverage can be found here, while our guides to the various political parties can be found here.

STA, 13 November 2018 - The EU Court of Justice has ruled in favour of a Slovenian company that filed a complaint against Austria over the system of bonds set down in the country's law on the prevention of payment and social dumping. According to lawyer Rudi Vouk, this is a landmark ruling that will have a positive effect on Slovenian companies doing business in Austria.

Čepelnik, a company based in Prevalje near the Austrian border, challenged the law after its client in Austria paid around EUR 5,000 to authorities in Völkermarkt in the company's place as a deposit for alleged violations instead of paying the company's invoice.

The EU court concluded that the legislation of a member state which allows the recipient of services to suspend payments to the contractor or to pay a security to guarantee the payment of a potential fine in place of the contractor "goes beyond what is necessary for attaining the objectives of protecting workers, combating fraud, in particular social security fraud, and preventing abuse".

The ruling is in line with the opinion of EU Advocate General Nils Wahl, who issued an opinion on the case in May. He said that measures like this system of bonds are in violation of the European directive on services and definitely exceed the scope of what is needed to enable national authorities to enforce national labour legislation.

Rudi Vouk, an Austrian lawyer of Slovenian descent, told the STA that the ruling was significant for Slovenian companies doing business in Austria.

Before the ruling, companies were in constant danger of their clients having to pay bonds for them in the event of the slightest alleged infringement of law. Additionally, potential clients were also aware of the possibility and potentially avoided Slovenian contractors.

"This danger has now been eliminated because the European court concluded that [the system of bonds] is not proportionate with the goals. Austrian legislators will have to annul the relevant provisions," Vouk said.

He added that other provisions, including those about minimum fines for infringements, "which are absurd", remain in place.

They have also been challenged at the EU court and given the latest ruling, there are reasons for optimism that the court would decide in a similar manner, Vouk added.

Čepelnik is one of the 121 Slovenian companies that complained with the European Commission over high fines and enhanced control of foreign companies providing services in Austria.

Other stories on the relationship between Slovenia and Austria can be found here

STA, 13 November 2018 - MovieMaker, a US magazine focussing on filmmaking, has listed Slovenia's Grossmann Festival of Fantastic Film and Wine as one of the world's 30 best genre festivals.

Listed alongside the Slovenian horror film festival are much larger festivals, such as Fantasia in Canada, Fantastic Fest in Austin, Midnight Madness in Toronto, Sitges in Spain and Frightfest in London, its organisers said on Tuesday.

In selecting the best genre festivals, MovieMaker's jury assessed their film programmes, guest appearances and accompanying events. Only seven festivals from Europe have made it to the list, according to the Grossmann Festival organisers.

The organisers consider the honour a great achievement since the number of film festivals, especially genre film festivals, around the globe is growing rapidly.

The recognition is ever greater, according to festival programme director Tomaž Horvat, because "this boutique festival" is working in difficult conditions.

Ljutomer, a town in the north-east of the country, is already getting ready for the 15th edition of the festival, which will be held in July 2019.

This year, the festival featured as many as 29 feature films, ten documentaries and 53 short films from 29 countries, with Errementari: The Blacksmith and the Devil, a Gothic horror film directed by Basque Paul Urkijo Alijo, emerging as the big winner.

Related: Days of Wine and Horror at the Grossmann Fantastic Film & Wine Festival

Below is a review of today’s news in Slovenia, summarised by the headlines in the daily newspapers for Wednesday, 14 November 2018, as prepared by the STA:

DELO

Future of EU
"'Tolerance is the soul of Europe'": The address by German Chancellor Angela Merkel in the European Parliament focused on stressing European values, desired unity of the EU and announcements of bold and ground-breaking projects. (front page, 3)

Bandelli case
"Cohesion minister resigns after ultimatum": Marko Bandelli resigned as development and EU cohesion funds minister before the end of the ultimatum set by Prime Minister Marjan Šarec, who has in turn been accused by Bandelli's party SAB of violating the coalition agreement. (front page, 2)

NLB listing
"Who will make profit with NLB shares first?": A new chapter in the history of NLB opens today, as the bank is listed on the Ljubljana Stock Exchange after an IPO in which its price reached EUR 51.50 per share. (front page, 3)

Economic forecast
"Zakrajšek of FED on preparations for a new crisis": While a new crisis is not on the horizon, Slovenian Egon Zakrajšek of the US Federal Reserve has called on Slovenian companies which want to survive to create liquidity reserves, control fixed costs, and diversify buyers and clients. (front page, 4)

DNEVNIK

Bandelli case
"Bandelli leaving government": Marko Bandelli resigned as development and EU cohesion funds minister after coming under fire for threatening a mayoral candidate in Komen. His party SAB was meanwhile critical of Prime Minister Marjan Šarec for giving Bandelli an ultimatum. (front page, 3, 16)

Sexual abuse
"Police officer involved in sexual abuse": A police officer is said to be involved in the sexual abuse of a mentally ill man from Ljubljana, because of which an organiser of private sex parties has been sentenced to eight years in prison. (front page, 12)

Future of EU
"Fiery speech by Merkel for values and tolerance in Europe": German Chancellor Angela Merkel addressed the European Parliament, calling among other things for the establishment of an European army. She was both booed and applauded. (front page, 6)

FINANCE

Takeovers
"Fight for Perutnina Ptuj heats up!": While MHP, a Ukrainian poultry producer, has offered the highest price for Slovenia's Perutnina Ptuj and has obtained approvals from four regulators, the losing bidder, France's LDC, is not giving up. (front page, 4-5)

Tourism
"Can the state really afford delaying privatisation for years?": Slovenia is attracting an increasing number of tourists, but in order to continue to grow, the country's tourism sector needs investments, which requires privatisation. (front page, 2-3)

Labour legislation
"Slovenian entrepreneurs win against Austria": The European Court of Justice has ruled that the Austrian legislation for foreign companies and posted workers is in violation of the EU law. Austria will have to change the law, and it will probably not be implemented in the meantime. (front page, 6)

NLB listing
"Will it be possible to short NLB?": As the NLB bank is to become the only Slovenian joint-stock company to be traded on a stock exchange in Western Europe (in London), the paper wonders whether this opens up new trading strategies. (front page, 10-11)

VEČER

Healthcare
"Only to the nearest doctor": The changed rules for transportation of patients have started with November, with patients having the right to be transported only to the nearest provider of the service they need. (front page, 2-3)

Trilateral Commission meets in Slovenia
"Group of influential figures in Slovenia for the first time ": The European group of the Trilateral Commission, a global, private lobbyist group of the most influential people in business, politics and media, will meet in Slovenia on Friday. (front page, 4)

Local elections
"Who will be the leader of Slovenj Gradec?": The paper hosted yesterday evening an election debate of the candidates for the mayor of Slovenj Gradec, the only urban municipality in the northern region of Koroška. (front page, 4)

STA, 13 November 2018 - Slovenia's Jan Oblak has been named the best goalkeeper in the Spanish premier football league La Liga in the 2017/2018 season, which is the third time in a row that the 25-year-old from Škofja Loka, who plays for Atletico Madrid, received the Zamora Trophy conferred by the Spanish daily sport newspaper Marca.

Oblak joined the Spanish side in the 2014/15 season, when he signed a six-year contract worth EUR 16m to become the fifth highest-paid goalkeeper in history, the highest-paid Slovenian football player ever and the highest-paid goalkeeper in La Liga.

He received his first Zamora Trophy, named after goalkeeper Ricardo Zamora, in the 2015/16 season, when he conceded only 18 goals in 38 matches, defending the title in the next season, when he received 21 goals in 29 matches.

In the past season in the Spanish first division, he played in 37 matches for Atletico Madrid to concede only 22 goals for a 0.59 ratio, which was far above the rest of the goalkeeper competition.

With his third title of the best goalkeeper in the Spanish first division, Oblak equalised with Zamora himself and five other goalkeeping legends. The Slovenian is now only behind Juan Acuna and Santiago Canizares (4) and Victor Valdes and Antoni Ramallets (5).

Only two other players received three trophies in a row, with Arconada winning the accolade between the 1979/80 and 1981/82 seasons and Valdes between the 2007/08 and the 2011/12 seasons.

STA, 13 November 2018 - While most local races revolve around things such as traffic and the local economy, illegal migrations have featured prominently in the election campaign in the town of Črnomelj in the south east. Incumbent Mayor Mojca Čemas Stjepanovič seems to be caught between a rival calling for more anti-migration measures, and opponents of such measures.

Although four candidates are running for Črnomelj mayor, the two main protagonists are Čemas Stjepanovič, a candidate of the Pensioners' Party (DeSUS) and the Social Democrats (SD), and Maja Kocjan, put forward by the Democrats (SDS) and supported by the New Slovenia (NSi).

Kocjan, a municipal councillor of the SDS who has been very active in an anti-immigration group called the Bela Krajina Civil Initiative, advocates a harsher approach to migrations.

Illegal immigration in Slovenia rose by 400% in first nine months of 2018

The number of illegal crossings of the Slovenian border surged by more than 400% year-on-year between January and September, to 6,667. As many as 2,050 of the crossings were recorded in the Črnomelj area and the number rose to 2,498 until 4 November.

Kocjan believes Slovenia should send a signal to migrants that the Slovenian border cannot be penetrated, so she is calling for additional fencing along the bordering Kolpa river in places where there is no fencing yet.

Čemas Stjepanovič told an election debate aired by the commercial broadcaster Kanal A at the end of last month that additional fencing was being erected in the most critical areas and that future steps would depend on the number of migrants crossing the border.

She also expressed her grievances regarding the costs of migrations that fall on the municipality. "This means that we have less money available for other purposes," she said.

Kocjan would also like soldiers to protect the border and that the state authorities were more susceptible to the safety concerns of local population, including about any plans to set up migrant centres in the region.

But while Kocjan has criticised Čemas Stjepanovič for not being determined enough in the face of migrations, the opponents of anti-migration measures claim the opposite on social media.

A Facebook group opposing the border fence in Bela Krajina is upset by Čemas Stjepanovič's collaboration with the police in the erection of additional fencing along the Kolpa.

Saying that the two parties which support her advocate a different approach to migration, the group claims Čemas Stjepanovič is taking on the same anti-migration rhetoric ahead of election as the SDS candidate, Kocjan.

"Another election this year is being marked by repressive measures and scaremongering in what is no emergency situation," the group wrote on Facebook at the beginning of the month.

Immigration not such an issue in other border areas

Interestingly, migrations have not emerged as a major topic in any of the other municipalities affected by migrations, even though it seemed they might become a prominent issue in particular for centre-right parties.

The issue has come up only in Kočevje, where the National Party (SNS) candidate, Alenka Jelenovič, one of the four candidates challenging incumbent Mayor Vladimir Prebilič, voiced opposition to the setting up of a migrant centre unperturbed by there being no such formal plans for the area.

All our local election coverage can be found here