180th Regular Session of the Government of the Republic of Slovenia

During the closed part of the session, the Government examined the announced ownership changes at the Ljubljana Stock Exchange, which the Croatian state agency Fina intends to acquire. The discussion focused on safeguarding the national interests of the Republic of Slovenia and its shareholders. The Government adopted several decisions and lifted their confidentiality classification. In the Government’s assessment, FINA, as the prospective qualified shareholder of the Ljubljana Stock Exchange, does not meet the reputation criteria as defined in Article 73 of the Banking Act. The Government also adopted a decision amending the decree designating critical infrastructure of the Republic of Slovenia and its operators, adding the Ljubljana Stock Exchange as a critical infrastructure operator. Any acquisition of a critical infrastructure entity by a foreign state or by a legal entity under majority direct or indirect ownership of a foreign state requires the approval of the Government of the Republic of Slovenia. With these decisions, the Government fully follows the recommendations of the National Assembly’s Committee on Finance. The Government’s decisions have been submitted to the Council of the Securities Market Agency.

Today, the Government submitted to parliamentary procedure the draft Act Amending the Radiotelevizija Slovenija Act. The proposal introduces more stable systemic funding for Slovenia’s largest public media institution by regulating the financing of the Symphonic Orchestra and Big Band ensembles, as well as programming for national minorities. At the same time, the proposal more clearly defines the roles and competences of the management, the Council and the Financial Board. With the amendments to the RTV Slovenia Act, the Government continues the overhaul of public media legislation, which it began immediately upon assuming office. At that time, political influence over the governance and editorial autonomy of the public broadcaster was eliminated, and full managerial and content independence was established. The proposed amendments now also provide systemic regulation of funding for musical production and minority programming, further strengthening the financial autonomy of RTV Slovenia. Under the proposal, musical production—comprising, among other units, the symphony orchestra, Big Band and RTV Slovenia choirs—would be formally classified as part of public service activities. Italian and Hungarian minority programmes would receive stable budgetary funding. Each year, resources amounting to 10 percent of the annual RTV contribution would be secured for minority programming, and 4 percent for musical production. The proposal also introduces provisions aligned with the European Media Freedom Act, further clarifying the separation of governance and oversight functions within RTV Slovenia, particularly the division of competences between the management, the Council and the Financial Board.

The Government approved the draft Act Amending the Sport Act and forwarded it to the National Assembly for consideration. The amendments introduce significant steps to further strengthen Slovenian sport and ensure comprehensive support for athletes, coaches and other professionals. The Ministry of the Economy, Tourism and Sport prepared the proposal together with the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Labour, Family, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities, the sports sector, the Olympic Committee, national sports federations and numerous stakeholders, who have highlighted the challenges encountered by athletes during and after their sports careers. Slovenia has achieved historic sporting results in recent years — thanks to the dedication, sacrifice and exceptional work of its athletes. It is therefore the responsibility of the state to ensure a safer, more structured and predictable environment for them both during and after their careers. The new act clearly delivers on this goal. The proposal introduces four key measures to address long-standing systemic gaps and focuses on the people who have shaped Slovenian sport for decades. It continues the Government’s commitment to investing in sport, sporting infrastructure and modern support mechanisms that will enable the continued development of Slovenian sport at home and peak performance on the global stage.

The draft amendment to the Equalisation of Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities Act (ZIMI) provides that existing public-use facilities must be adapted for persons with disabilities through construction works and technical installations, audio and visual indicators, written information and other appropriate technical adjustments. Existing public-use facilities and those undergoing reconstruction for which no building permit is required must be adapted at least to the extent that persons with disabilities can access all services available to the public within the facility. Adaptations must be ensured in whole or in part unless they are technically unfeasible, impose a disproportionate burden, or impair the essential or other required characteristics of the facility. The owner or manager of a public-use facility must prepare and permanently retain an assessment in cases where adaptations are deemed technically unfeasible, disproportionately burdensome or detrimental to essential requirements.

In addition to harmonising Slovenian legislation with EU rules on business communications (advertising) by lawyers, the proposed amendments to the Attorneys Act introduce minor changes and improvements to the disciplinary procedure and revise penal provisions to close existing legal gaps. Under the current legal framework, sole proprietors or individuals independently performing activities—and their responsible persons—could not be sanctioned even in cases of violations under Article 2 of the Attorneys Act. The proposed amendments therefore extend fining authority to include these entities. The Financial Administration of the Republic of Slovenia is designated as the competent authority for supervision and imposition of fines on individuals. The aim of the proposed changes is to ensure lawful and proportionate regulation of business communications by attorneys in line with EU law and to safeguard the integrity of the profession.