What follows is a weekly review of events involving Slovenia, as prepared by the STA.
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FRIDAY, 28 May
LJUBLJANA - Igor Zorčič remained parliamentary speaker as only 45 MPs voted to dismiss him in a secret ballot, one short of the needed majority, just like in the first attempt on 30 March after he quit the coalition Modern Centre Party (SMC).
MOSCOW, Russia - As EU presiding country, Slovenia will make efforts to reduce tensions in relations with Russia, Slovenian Foreign Minister Anže Logar announced after meeting his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov. Lavrov said he would like EU-Russia relations to be normalised.
LJUBLJANA - More than one million Covid-19 vaccine doses had been administered in Slovenia as 653,310 people received a first shot and 381,619 were fully inoculated, data from the National Institute of Public Health showed. The figures mean that just over 31% of Slovenia's entire population has received at least one dose, and just over 18% has been fully vaccinated.
LJUBLJANA - Thousands of protesters took to the streets of the capital protesting against the government's actions and calling for an early election. The rally included various groups and movements and was supported by trade unions and the centre-left opposition.
LJUBLJANA - The government and ten out of over 40 public sector trade unions signed a deal which abolishes some of the remaining austerity measures introduced during the financial crisis, delays the payday and raises the holiday allowance. It is estimated at EUR 65 million. The majority of the unions signed the deal, but some have refused.
LJUBLJANA - Montenegrin Prime Minister Zdravko Krivokapić was on an working visit to Slovenia meeting Prime Minister Janez Janša to discuss the Covid-19 pandemic, bilateral relations and Montenegro's EU prospects. Krivokapić also met Speaker Igor Zorčič and President Borut Pahor.
AJDOVŠČINA - Biotech company BIA Separations - Sartorius launched a new production facility, which increases the company's production capacities fivefold. The new production facility of 3,200 square metres will be used to produce chromatographic columns for cleaning new generations of medicines.
SATURDAY, 29 May
SEŽANA - Luka Mesec pledged for the Left to do all in its power to make the future free, democratic and green, as the party met for a congress to set out its green manifesto and launch elections to the party council. The results of the vote were not immediately announced.
LJUBLJANA - Prime Minister Janez Janša and his wife Urška Bačovnik Janša were in Zagreb to attend a ceremony marking Croatia's Statehood Day. Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković invited Janša and his spouse to attend a concert in front of the Croatian National Theatre.
SUNDAY, 30 May
BRDO PRI KRANJU - Slovenian President Borut Pahor and his German and Portuguese counterparts, Frank-Walter Steinmeier and Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, highlighted the importance of Europe's unity and the European idea as they held a meeting in Brdo pri Kranju.
BRDO PRI KRANJU - President Borut Pahor said Slovenia was not in a political crisis, it was just in the midst of "heightened political uncertainty". There is enough maturity and experience in Slovenian politics that the country may preside the Council of the EU at a level that fulfils the high expectations of all 27 member states, he said.
GORNJI GRAD - Maksimilijan Matjaž was installed as the new Bishop of Celje, almost three months after his appointment was announced by the Vatican. The ceremony was held at the Cathedral of St. Hermagoras and Fortunatus in Gornji Grad, the biggest church in the Celje diocese.
MONDAY, 31 May
LJUBLJANA - After contracting by an estimated 5.5% in real terms last year, Slovenia's economy returned to growth in the first quarter of the year as GDP expanded at an annual rate of 1.6% in real terms or by as much as 2.3% when adjusted for season. It rose by 1.4% from the final quarter of 2020, the Statistics Office said.
LJUBLJANA - President Borut Pahor and his Portuguese counterpart Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, visiting as Slovenia is soon to take over the rotating EU presidency from Portugal agreed that presidents played an important role in the process despite the EU presidency being managed by governments.
LJUBLJANA - The Hungarian OTP Bank Group announced it had signed a contract to acquire the outright stake in NKBM, Slovenia's second largest bank, making OTP the biggest player on the Slovenian banking market. The deal is to be finalised in the second quarter of next year.
BRDO PRI KRANJU - Addressing the annual consultation of Slovenian diplomats dedicated to Slovenia's upcoming EU presidency, Foreign Minister Anže Logar said Slovenia was well prepared for the presidency, listing the Conference on the Future of the EU and the progress of Western Balkan countries on their path towards the EU as the key topics.
BRDO PRI KRANJU - President Borut Pahor vowed to make an effort for Slovenia to accomplish its job as the president of the Council of the EU with "maturity, cooperation and responsibility", as he urged a strengthening of pro-European policies in his address to diplomats.
LJUBLJANA - The head of the national advisory group for Covid-19 vaccination, Bojana Beović, said the group would recommend vaccinating children, especially children suffering from chronic diseases, after the European Medicines Agency's approval of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine for children aged 12 or more.
TUESDAY, 1 June
BRDO PRI KRANJU - PM Janez Janša said in his address to Slovenian diplomats that the key challenges for the EU in the coming period were getting back on its feet after the Covid-19 pandemic and setting itself strategic goals, including expansion to the Western Balkans.
LUXEMBOURG, Luxembourg - European Justice Commissioner Didier Reynders told reporters at the launch of the European Public Prosecutor's Office that the European Commission was in contact with the Slovenian authorities for Slovenia to fulfil its obligations regarding the appointment of its European delegated prosecutors as soon as possible but had so far not received a positive answer.
LJUBLJANA - The Prosecution Council announced it would propose that the State Attorneys Office file a lawsuit against the government for breach of law to the detriment of public interest after the government annulled the procedure to appoint Slovenia's two European delegated prosecutors.
LJUBLJANA - The National Assembly rejected a proposal from the centre-left opposition for a consultative referendum on the government-sponsored bill on the national Demographic Fund.
LJUBLJANA - The National Assembly passed amendments to the act on road transport that create the legal basis for transportation platforms such as Uber or Lyft, changes that the government argues will facilitate the digitalisation of the transport sector.
LJUBLJANA - A month-long fundraising campaign by the Association of Slovenian Journalists (DNS), which has raised EUR 264,500 for the Slovenian Press Agency (STA), ended. Donations via SMS are no longer possible, but those via bank transfer are possible until the end of June.
WEDNESDAY, 2 June
LJUBLJANA - The Constitutional Court declared provisions of the communicable diseases act allowing the government to restrict movement and public assembly unconstitutional, and annulled the government decrees that were based on this law, including those relating to the night curfew, ban on assembly, and confining citizens to their regions or municipalities.
LJUBLJANA - The government adopted the programme of Slovenia's presidency of the EU covering four priority areas - resilience and recovery, the rule of law, a credible and safe EU, and the Conference on the Future of Europe.
LJUBLJANA - The government changed the decree on the conditions for entering Slovenia to recognise a negative rapid antigen test in addition to a negative PCR test as of 5 June until 13 June. Some restrictions in the services sector were also relaxed, including those concerning swimming pools, consuming food and drink at the takeaway points and the number of customers at shopping centres.
LJUBLJANA - Slovenia received 300,000 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine against Covid-19 on loan from Hungary in what Prime Minister Janez Janša said would allow Slovenia to stop the epidemic and enjoy a relaxed summer. Health Minister Janez Poklukar said Slovenia would return vaccines to Hungary expectedly in the autumn or by the end of the year.
BRUSSELS, Belgium - The European Commission urged Slovenia to pay special attention to the structure of public finances and quality of budget measures as it released the European semester spring package. It recommends that the country strive for medium-term fiscal sustainability when the economic situation allows it.
PRAGUE, Czechia/ BRATISLAVA, Slovakia - Interior Minister Aleš Hojs told his Czech counterpart Jan Hamáček and his Slovak counterpart Roman Mikulec in Bratislava Slovenia would focus during its EU presidency on negotiations on legislative acts as part of the new Pact on Migration and Asylum and on strengthening the Schengen zone.
LJUBLJANA - Foreign Minister Anže Logar talked on the phone with Liechtenstein's Minister of Foreign Affairs, Education, and Sport Dominique Hasler. Bilateral cooperation, the upcoming Slovenian presidency of the EU and the Covid-19 pandemic topped the agenda.
BRUSSELS, Belgium - Finance Minister Andrej Šircelj concluded a two-day working visit to Brussels dominated by talks with senior officials in preparation for the EU presidency. Meeting European Commissioner for Trade Valdis Dombrovskis, he emphasised the importance of fast and successful post-pandemic recovery.
THURSDAY, 3 June
LJUBLJANA - The government established the Recovery and Resilience Office. The new department will operate under the Finance Ministry to coordinate and manage the implementation of the national recovery and resilience plan. The office will be inaugurated on 1 August at the latest.
BRUSSELS, Belgium - President Borut Pahor started his two-day visit to Brussels by appearing in a debate with Brussels think-tanks, saying he would like Slovenia to use its presidency of the Council of the EU to enhance the union and its role in it.
LUXEMBOURG, Luxembourg - Infrastructure Minister Jernej Vrtovec told EU transport ministers that the priorities of Slovenia's upcoming EU presidency in transport would be sustainability and resilience.
LJUBLJANA - National Assembly Speaker Igor Zorčič took part in the first Three Seas Parliamentary Forum, which was held in a virtual format to discuss the role of parliaments in the initiative and how they could contribute to making it more recognisable.
LJUBLJANA - The government expanded the number of points where residents will be able to get their digital identity to expand the use of digital Covid certificates once they enter into force. In addition to administrative units, those points will include vaccination centres, social work centres, the Financial Administration and other points.
LJUBLJANA - The government changed the decrees limiting attendance at public sport and cultural events to increase the permitted number of viewers from 50% to 75% of the number of fixed seats at a venue. The eased attendance cap applies both to indoor and outdoor venues.
LJUBLJANA - The parliamentary Commission for Oversight of Public Finances urged the government to resume STA funding as set down in a coronavirus relief law in three days. Culture Ministry State Secretary Ignacija Fridl Jarc announced that the ministry would like the funding dispute to get resolved and was thus drafting a decree.
LJUBLJANA - A total of 75,148 were registered as unemployed in Slovenia at the end of May, down 5.2% over April and 16.9% over May last year, in what is the fourth month in a row that unemployment decreased, the Employment Service said.
