WEBVTT

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Marjan Pipenbaher.

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As the meeting is still in session,
I propose to make a quick press

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statement. Let us give the floor
first to Mr Pipenbaher, please.

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Greetings to all.

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We have been working for a month.

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The inaugural meeting 
was a month ago.

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We made proposals, we gave ideas.

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This is a formal meeting where 
we are essentially analysing the

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situation. Even what has already
been done in a month.

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What will be the measures, what is
urgent and all the other things.

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Briefly, because there will be more
questions to follow.

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Today we have nine items on the
agenda, yes, that is

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to say, from the analysis of
flooding in all three river basins,

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to bridges, legislation.

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Short-term measures, which are
already underway, and what is

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extremely important.

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Long-term measures.

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These measures, which would 
also very much remain in

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the final phase, will also take a
long time, and they need to be

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approached very deliberately.

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That's a short summary.

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I now give the floor to the Prime
Minister.

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Dr Robert Golob.

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Today is in fact the first meeting of
the Expert Council, but as I said, we

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already have a summary of all the
work that has been done.

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The key to all of this is that we
recognise the seriousness of the

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problem and that we take a truly
professional and common-sense

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approach to solutions.

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Which means that we first need to
identify which are the areas where

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remediation makes sense and which
are the areas that should simply be

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avoided. This applies to bridges,
roads, watercourses and buildings.

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One thing that has been talked about
a lot today, but perhaps not much in

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public, is landslides.

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10,000 landslides have been
triggered.

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Of course, not all are equally
dangerous, but nevertheless it is the

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landslide terrain that is equally
dangerous as the water terrain.

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It is very important to find out
what to do with the rehabilitation of

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buildings and how to approach it.

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I do not want to say that the panel
of experts has raised a multitude of

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problems today, but if we are not
aware of the problems, then we cannot

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actually find solutions.

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And I think that the expert panel
has shown very clearly today that

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such a body is not only sensible,
but necessary if this renewal is

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actually to achieve its objective.

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And that is that the resilience to
natural disasters in these areas will

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be greater after reconstruction.

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And that is the main goal we are
pursuing.

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We want to help people to get
connected very quickly, so that they

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can have a roof over their heads.

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At the same time, we want to ensure
that the construction that will take

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place is resilient to future
disasters.

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That makes this part all the more
important.

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There has been a lot of talk, as I
said, a lot of points, about the need

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to bring the technical office closer
to the people on the ground through

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the branches. For the first time, we
now have an inventory of damaged

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buildings. There are almost 1 000 of
these buildings that are seriously

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damaged, and now they will have to
be visited one by one on the ground

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and looked at. And what I want to
point out is that I believe that

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expectations are high.

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Expectations for speed.

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But never before has it been shown
that speed in the case of these

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facilities, when you do not know
what will happen on these terrains or

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water or landslides, that it is
useful.

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It is therefore necessary to see the
terrain and these facilities on the

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ground, and this is the task of the
technical office and its branches.

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And this process is now starting in
the affected regions.

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Thank you very much Prime Minister.

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We have agreed on three questions,
because they have to go back to the

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meeting. If you could come up and
introduce yourselves.

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Žana Vrtačnik, Pop TV.

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When can people expect more concrete
solutions, for example in flooded

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areas where it is not known whether
they will have to move permanently

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or not. In Braslovče, for example.

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And second: concrete solutions for
cleaning up watercourses.

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What was on the table today in this
regard?

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And the third one.

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About the intervention costs
for municipalities.

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October 4 is
around the corner.

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Contractors have been
working since August.

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Thank you very much.

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I will answer first.

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I am sometimes surprised, on the one
hand, at the slowness of the

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mechanisms and, on the other, at the
unrealistic expectations when, in

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this case, some mayors know very
well that they have not yet sent all

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the proof of payment.

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The procedure is also very clear.

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The State has assumed 100% 
of the intervention costs.

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This has never happened before.

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Until now, intervention costs have
always been left to municipalities,

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and that is why.

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Of course, there is also
significantly less intervention.

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It's less comprehensive
and also slower.

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This time is different.

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At the same time, it is a procedure
to which we have committed ourselves,

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and to which we will insist, that
every euro that is spent will

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actually be verified and will also
be made public.

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And today, that is exactly what is
happening.

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The Government has done its job.

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The Government has accepted the
intervention costs.

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They were registered.

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Rough assessment.

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The Government has confirmed.

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It has transferred money to the
relevant ministries and has been

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appropriate and specific in
intervention costs.

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It's up to the municipalities, and I
think they have up to

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October 5, or maybe 6, to provide 
evidence for the costs, and

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this process of proof is ongoing.

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And no, not all the evidence that
has come to the administration to

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date is actually eligible for
payments.

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This in itself makes it clear that
it is right that we are careful with

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our money and your money and with
the money we share.

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100 million of intervention costs
are recognised.

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It is correct to look at whether all
claims are legitimate.

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As soon as a claim is legitimate and
as soon as this process is completed,

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the money will be transferred.

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The State has already transferred
money to the administration, and now

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it is up to the administration to
transparently channel this money to

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the contractors. And I stress that,
unfortunately, again, not all claims

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are necessarily eligible for a
transfer, and given that the cost of

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this reconstruction will run into
billions.

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6, 7, 8, 9, we do not know how many
billions, it is all the more

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important that we start paying only
those bills that are legitimate in a

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transparent and real way.

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This second part, as regards
specific areas.

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You know that tomorrow we have our
first Government meeting in a flood

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zone, in this case in Koroška.

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We envisage that within two weeks,
maybe three weeks, two or three

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weeks, we will repeat this
Government meeting in the Upper

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Savinja region.

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At that time, at that meeting, we
will also go to the people and we

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will then also decide what to do in
those areas that you mentioned.

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The profession is now giving its
opinion.

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Of course, in a way, we want 
them to put it in writing.

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Then, with and on the basis of this
opinion, we will take decisions at

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this meeting that will be, in
reality, political, if you like.

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But we want to talk to people before
we do that and tell them directly

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what the situation is.

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Two more questions.

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I would just like to ask for an
answer about the watercourses.

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There is no machinery, no people and
citizens are afraid of what might

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happen in the next rainfall, and
also the law on reconstruction.

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The aim was to have it in place by
the end of September.

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Perhaps some key points?

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In the beginning, that positive
energy, that momentum is very nice.

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These watercourses are being
restored.

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We also need to be aware that these
solutions, which are being

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implemented now, are also not
definitive solutions, and that there

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will be some adjustments to the
long-term solutions later on.

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The key point is: we know exactly
that there are usually heavy rains in

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November. And by then, in fact, the
riverbeds must be cleaned.

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The dredging must be removed, where
further dredging is needed, the

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dredging will be done and, in fact,
the banks will be consolidated so

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that all these slopes are not likely
to be demolished again.

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That is the key thing now.

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This is followed, of course, by
long-term action on flood risk.

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We are probably debating these flood
studies right now.

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We can see what area has been
flooded, what the problems are, what

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the consequences are.

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We need to be aware of something.

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We have to tackle rivers
holistically, that is to say, we

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cannot tackle Braslovce 
or maybe Celje .

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But we have to tackle rivers
holistically, that is to say, from

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the Savinja, for example from the
outlet of the Sava, and practically

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up to the Logarska dolina.

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Because there is a constant
interaction here, that is to say, we

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make a dry reservoir, we stop the
flood wave, we make a wall, we make a

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river bed, we release the water, 
the water goes through Celje, but it

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floods down below, to Laško.

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These solutions are now essentially
professional and must be solved

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comprehensively, they will remain
too much, not that it will cost us

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too much to carry out this
reconstruction, that we can afford

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now, in fact, to have solutions that
are not in harmony with each other,

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or that worsen the situation in some
other area.

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One of the things that we have also
discussed in the Council is that we

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will have to make a national
programme for the regulation of

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watercourses. This must be 
a long-term programme.

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I think it would be a good idea for
this programme to be definitely

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approved in Parliament so that this
money is then guaranteed.

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That the money is guaranteed, for
regular maintenance, if we were to

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invest 250 million there.

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And if we had invested in this on a
regular basis, we would have much,

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much less damage today.

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And these are the key things that
need to be tackled globally.

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Data is still being collected, but
what do you think the damage

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assessment is?

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What assumptions should 
we operate with now?

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We have heard the Prime Minister
emphasise, and he has also

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emphasised, that the reconstruction
will cost 6 billion, 7 billion, even

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9 billion. What figures are you
using or what do you think of this

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estimate?

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Look, these estimates that have been
made are estimates, and that is what

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the Prime Minister said at a press
conference last time.

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These are the starting start data.

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I'm sure

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that when you go into the depth 
of the problem, things will

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actually open up further.

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Look at one landslide for example,
it looks innocent, we do geological

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and geomechanical investigations.

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In the end, we see that this is 150
thousand cubic metres of land.

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These landslides need to be stopped
at pile walls, wells.

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This needs to be drained.

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That is why it is essentially one of
a kind.

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Probably this assessment that the
Government has made.

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I would say this is the starting
starting point, from which I would

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say at the moment after all this
data that we have a base from.

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No, that is the subject
of today's meeting.

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I understand that the price is even
higher .

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If we are operating with some
figures, very high figures, I find it

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difficult to imagine what we are
talking about now.

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Look, these estimates that have been
set at the beginning are starting

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estimates. But there are things, and
I am most afraid about avalanches in

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general. What the Director of the
Geological Survey said today was that

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10 000 of these landslides
have been triggered.

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Of these, there are, for example, 30
or 40 that are actually more critical

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landslides, where major earthworks
will be needed, which will not be,

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which will not start immediately.

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First of all, surveys have to be
done with all this machinery.

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We have started, but it will
certainly be necessary,

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 as the Prime Minister said.

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This money will have to be handled
rationally and look at what matters.

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The solution may or may not be.

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We will have to involve, the best
professionals, the best experts,

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people who have experience.

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People who know how to make
decisions and stand by them.

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A lot depends on it.

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I can add one thing on the damage.

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In the Ajda system, the
municipalities alone have entered

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2.7 billion. 
This ignores the economy.

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This does not take into account the
damage to public infrastructure, the

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national infrastructure.

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And the inventory of direct damage
alone shows today a level of four

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billion, This is the inventory of
direct damage.

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This does not mean that we will pay
for this direct damage entirely from

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the budget. 
That's one thing.

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Nor does it mean that all this
damage will be urgently repaired.

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That's damage. We will decide, on
the basis of a plan, which we are

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still quite far from, because we
first have to prepare the appropriate

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foundations, how we are going to
fix, repair, replace these facilities

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and this infrastructure with better
and more resilient ones.

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And then we will know what the cost
of renewal and development is.

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We have to distinguish between the
direct damage, which I spoke about

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earlier, and, for example, the very
rough inventory that we are preparing

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for the application to the European
Union Solidarity Fund.

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And this is a very rough estimate,
currently around eight billion.

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And that's where we're at

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and the actions we will take.

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And I stress: no, it will not be done
in half a year, and there is no

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promise that it will be done in a
year, because I know that sometimes

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people misunderstand.

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We are talking about a plan that
will take five to ten years if we

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want to actually get the renovation
done in the right way.

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And during this period, this
assessment can be realised.

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This is an estimate of the cost of
renewal and development.

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We need to distinguish between
direct damage and reconstruction and

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development costs. I cannot be
clearer than that.

00:16:26.060 --> 00:16:27.290
Thank you very much.

00:16:31.948 --> 00:16:33.660
I would just like to say one thing.

00:16:33.780 --> 00:16:37.010
It is really incredible to me why
this information, if it has not been

00:16:37.130 --> 00:16:38.799
made public yet. I've done my own
research.

00:16:38.920 --> 00:16:45.920
Her journey cost less than €6,000.

00:16:46.040 --> 00:16:47.550
I really have nothing 
to add to that.

00:16:47.671 --> 00:16:51.190
If the biggest national problem is a
€6,000 trip to New York for a

00:16:51.310 --> 00:16:54.320
minister, then we live
in a happy country.