News

One of the staff members of the Prime Minister’s Office was tested for COVID-19 yesterday as he was not feeling well. Since the test was positive, a testing for all employees who had been in contact with the staff member concerned was organised in accordance with the guidelines and epidemiological recommendations of the NIJZ (National Institute of Public Health).

Based on the German version, the application has already been adapted to Slovenian conditions and is undergoing a testing phase. It was presented at a press conference by Peter Geršak, State Secretary at the Ministry of Public Administration, Primož Cigoj, Director of the RSteam company, and Špela Horjak, Deputy Government Spokesperson.

The news report, which was published on a fraudulent website and is making the rounds on social media, is an online scam. There are statements on the website that were not made or written by Prime Minister Janez Janša and were falsely attributed to him, moreover, the photos were published without authorisation from the authors.

On Monday, 874 tests were carried out and 14 new cases were confirmed, including one in the Hrastnik Care Home. The Head of the Expert Group on the containment and control of the COVID-19 epidemic, Dr Bojana Beović, and Deputy Government Spokesperson, Ms Špela Horjak, discussed the current situation regarding the COVID-19 disease at a press conference.

The press conference on the COVID-19 situation following Thursday's regular Government session focused on controlling the spread of the virus at the Hrastnik Care Home. The main speakers were the Minister of Health, Tomaž Gantar, the Minister of Labour, Family, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities, Janez Cigler Kralj, and the deputy government spokesperson, Špela Horjak.

The Government of the Republic of Slovenia finalised the text of the proposed Energy Efficiency Act, adopted the Guidelines for the drawing up of the draft revised budget of the Republic of Slovenia for 2020, the proposed amendments to the budget of the Republic of Slovenia for 2021 and the proposed budget of the Republic of Slovenia for 2022, and decided to extend the measure of partial reimbursement of salary compensation for temporarily laid-off workers until 31 August 2020. The Government revoked the minimum trading hours of shops and lifted the ban on the operation of shops on Sundays.

After successfully concluding negotiations and securing EUR 10.5 billion in funds for Slovenia, the Government today held a working consultation on the absorption of funding. The Government first took note of Slovenia's absorption of funds from the 2014–2020 EU budget, which stands at a low rate of 39%.

The press conference on the COVID-19 situation focused on the epidemiological situation in the country and the region, as well as the presentation of an application for the protection of people's health and lives during the pandemic. The main speakers were the Minister of Public Administration, Boštjan Koritnik, the deputy head of the Communicable Disease Centre at the National Institute of Public Health, Nuška Čakš Jager, and the deputy government spokesperson, Špela Horjak.

Today, after several days of negotiations, the European Council reached an agreement on a multiannual financial framework and a recovery instrument totalling EUR 1,824 billion. The agreement brings extensive additional funds for Slovenia, which will facilitate the recovery after the COVID-19 crisis and encourage investments in the green transition and digital transformation.

European leaders are continuing their negotiations in Brussels today on the EU recovery package related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Today, Janez Janša, the Prime Minister of the Republic of Slovenia, held a video conference in Brussels with Richard Saynor, the Chief Executive Officer of Sandoz, the generic pharmaceuticals division of Novartis International AG.

On the 10th anniversary of Slovenia’s membership in the OECD, government representatives in Brdo pri Kranju discuss opportunities and challenges faced by members. Attendees of the event were addressed by the Slovenian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Anže Logar, and the Secretary-General of the OECD, José Ángel Gurría. Prime Minister Janez Janša also spoke to Secretary-General Gurría in a videoconference. In their talks they focused on the topic of the demographic challenges Slovenia will face in upcoming years. The Secretary-General congratulated the Prime Minister on responding to the COVID-19 pandemic in a very effective and timely manner.

Today, Prime Minister Janez Janša held a video conference call with OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurria, who congratulated the Prime Minister on responding to the COVID-19 pandemic in a very effective and timely manner.

The leaders of the EU Member States are continuing with negotiations today on the EU recovery package in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic. As Slovenian Prime Minister Janez Janša pointed out yesterday on Twitter, Saturday marked the second day of attempts to reach an agreement on the budget and the recovery fund. According to the prime minister, the EU is once again showing itself in all its complexity of differences, smallness and greatness, selfishness and solidarity. “For some, a given; for others, something fought for. A test of perseverance,” wrote Prime Minister Janez Janša on Twitter yesterday.

On Friday, 17 July 2020, Fitch Ratings affirmed Slovenia's credit rating at 'A' with a stable outlook.

The leaders of the EU Member States met yesterday at an extraordinary meeting of the European Council in Brussels, where they held a 14-hour discussion on the EU coronavirus recovery package in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic. European Council President Charles Michel adjourned the meeting just before midnight and leaders resumed talks today.

Today and tomorrow, Prime Minister Janez Janša is participating at the extraordinary European Council meetings in Brussels, dedicated entirely to the negotiations on the EU’s Multiannual Financial Framework for 2021–2027, including the negotiations on the newly proposed recovery instrument.

At yesterday's meeting by correspondence, the Government issued the Ordinance on imposing and implementing measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19 at the external border crossings and at control points at the internal borders of the Republic of Slovenia. The Government dismissed the chief market inspector.

Today, Prime Minister Janez Janša met Managing Director of Fraport Slovenia, Zmago Skobir.

Today, Prime Minister Janez Janša met Chief Commissioner of the Commission for the Prevention of Corruption, Dr Robert Šumi.

Today, Prime Minister Janša published his reply to the State Prosecutor’s Council on his Twitter account. Upon the publication of the letter, he emphasised that calling for death and inciting hatred was highlighted in the 2019 report of the state prosecution service as the prosecution policy’s great priority. With the appointment of the new government, the position and conduct changed abruptly, which is clearly a case of double standards.

The entire letter can be found in the attachment.

At today’s 19th regular session of the National Assembly, Prime Minister Janez Janša answered parliamentary questions raised by Luka Mesec (the Left), Marko Bandelli (SAB – Party of Alenka Bratušek), Zmago Jelinčič Plemeniti (SNS – Slovenian National Party) and Jožef Horvat (NSI – New Slovenia, Christian People's Party).

At a press conference, Minister of Public Administration Boštjan Koritnik, Andreja Mojškrc from the Health Inspectorate and government spokesman Jelko Kacin spoke about the current situation regarding COVID-19.

The Prime Minister of the Republic of Slovenia, Janez Janša, yesterday had a meeting at Otočec with the Prime Minister of the Republic of Croatia, Andrej Plenković. The talks of both prime ministers and their delegations focused on a more coordinated fight against COVID-19 and the curbing of the spread of coronavirus. The participants at the meeting included Minister of the Interior, Aleš Hojs, Minister of Economic Development and Technology, Zdravko Počivalšek, State Secretary at the Ministry of Health, Dr Tina Bregant, Director of the National Institute of Public Health, Dr Milan Krek, and Director of the University Clinic of Pulmonary and Allergic Diseases Golnik, Aleš Rozman.

On Friday, Prime Minister Janez Janša was a guest on the TV programme Odmevi, in which he talked about various current political issues. The conversation focused on the measures related to the containment of the spread of the coronavirus, since the starting point of the interview was the meeting between the Slovenian Prime Minister and the Croatian Prime Minister at Otočec, which also took place yesterday. The first question posed by the anchor of the TV programme, Rosvita Pesek, was if Croatia will be put on the red list of COVID-19 risky countries with regard to the increase in the number of infected persons in Croatia.

At the press conference, the deputy head of the Communicable Disease Centre at the National Institute of Public Health, Nuška Čakš Jager, presented the current epidemiological situation in Slovenia. State Secretary at the Ministry of Labour, Family, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities, Mateja Ribič, and Government spokesperson, Ambassador Jelko Kacin, also spoke about the current situation regarding COVID-19 and the fourth package of anti-corona measures approved yesterday. Slovenia will also present the measures and the current epidemiological situation at today’s meeting between Prime Minister Janez Janša and Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković and their core expert teams responsible for controlling the epidemic. The meeting will focus on a coordinated fight against COVID-19, curbing the spread of coronavirus, measures for containing the spread especially among the young, and providing assistance to the Western Balkan countries in the fight against the virus.

Today, Prime Minister Janez Janša was on a working visit to Brussels. In the morning, he met Charles Michel, President of the European Council, and Jens Stoltenberg, NATO Secretary General, and later in the day, the Prime Minister met Janez Lenarčič, the Slovenian Commissioner, and Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission.

The Prime Minister of Slovenia, Janez Janša, today took part in an online conference entitled "Europe Uncensored". In addition to the Slovenian Prime Minister, the online conference was attended by Viktor Orban, Prime Minister of Hungary, Aleksandar Vučić, President of the Republic of Serbia, and François-Xavier Bellamy, Member of the European Parliament, philosopher. At the conference, the European leaders spoke about how to shape the future of Europe, given all the key challenges we are facing.

At its regular weekly meeting, the Government adopted a number of measures to curb the spread of COVID-19. This was announced at the press conference by the Government spokesman, Ambassador Jelko Kacin, epidemiologist Mateja Logar from the Clinic for Infectious Diseases and Febrile Conditions at the University Medical Center Ljubljana, and Deputy Director General of the Police Tomaž Pečjak.

At Monday's session, the Government, in its extended composition, decided on several actions to contain the spread of coronavirus infections in the country. At the press conference on the current situation regarding COVID-19, the session's conclusions were presented by the Head of the Communicable Disease Centre at the National Institute of Public Health, Mario Fafangel, the Director of the University Clinic of Pulmonary and Allergic Diseases Golnik, Aleš Rozman, and the government spokesman, Ambassador Jelko Kacin.

"The situation in the Balkans is drastically deteriorating", said official spokesman Jelko Kacin at the start of the government press conference, adding that the situation had worsened, especially in countries which, like some Western countries in the past, decided to hold elections (Serbia, Croatia), which will also be held soon in Northern Macedonia.

On Saturday and Sunday, Prime Minister Janez Janša responded on Twitter to the increasing number of confirmed new cases of infection with the new coronavirus during the last two and a half months.

The Prime Minister of the Republic of Slovenia, Mr Janez Janša, today met with the German Federal Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Heiko Maas, who at the beginning of Germany’s EU Council Presidency paid his first visit to Slovenia.

The Government of the Republic of Slovenia decided to include Belgium and the Netherlands in the list of epidemiologically safe counties or administrative units of countries (green list) as from 4 July 2020. It also decided to remove Czechia, Croatia and France from the green list, which means that these countries are now on the yellow list.

The Presidents of the coalition parties, Janez Janša, Zdravko Počivalšek, Matej Tonin and Aleksandra Pivec, and the President of the Slovenian National Party, Zmago Jelinčič Plemeniti, and the deputies of the two national communities, Ferenc Horváth and Felice Žiža, today signed an agreement between the political parties and the deputies of the national communities in the National Assembly of the Republic of Slovenia on cooperation in the adoption of laws and other acts and documents in the period 2020–2022.

The number of infected people in Slovenia has been increasing again in recent weeks, and the source of infections is no longer only imported cases, but also secondary infections and cases of unknown origin, said Bojana Beović, the head of the Government Advisory Group. The number has been increasing exponentially since end of May.

Prime Minister Janez Janša today met with President of the European Council Charles Michel via videoconference. They discussed the European Commission’s proposal for the Multiannual Financial Framework for the next seven-year period and the proposed recovery instrument.

Based on the agreement between the Slovenian and Croatian national institutes and the talks between both prime ministers, Janez Janša and Andrej Plenković, Slovenia will not remove Croatia from the green list of epidemiologically safe countries for now. Croatia plans to implement several measures to curb the spread of the virus, including closing nightclubs and cancelling similar events.

At its last night’s session, the Government of the Republic of Slovenia finalised the text of the proposed Act on the intervention measures to prepare for the second wave of COVID-19 (ACP4) to be submitted to the National Assembly of the Republic of Slovenia for discussion and adoption under an emergency procedure. The proposed act replaces the proposed amendment to ACP3 adopted by the Government last week.

Message by the Prime Minister of the Republic of Slovenia Janez Janša on Statehood Day

Today Prime Minister Janez Janša attended a number of events to commemorate tomorrow’s Statehood Day.

In today’s video conference at the Ministry of Defence, a day before Slovenian Statehood Day, Prime Minister Janez Janša addressed the members of the Slovenian Armed Forces on missions abroad. In addition to the Prime Minister, the video-conference was attended by the Minister of Defence, Matej Tonin, and the Chief of the General Staff of the Slovenian Armed Forces, Robert Glavaš.

At its session today, the Slovenian government decided to take Luxembourg and Montenegro off the list of epidemiologically safe countries or administrative units (i.e., the green list) as of 25 June 2020. In addition, the government decided to add Portugal and Albania to the list of countries with a deteriorated epidemiological situation (i.e., the red list) as of 25 June 2020.

Below is the press release following the videoconference of German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Portuguese Prime Minister António Costa and Slovenian Prime Minister Janez Janša.

Thirteen newly confirmed infections in Slovenia are more the result of less intensive testing over the weekend than the possible emergence of a new wave of the epidemic, said government spokesperson Jelko Kacin and head of the Communicable Disease Centre at the National Institute of Public Health Mario Fafangel at today's press conference. The government spokesperson added that no significant worsening of the situation was expected, but that the existing measures should continue to be followed: cough etiquette, hand washing and wearing masks indoors when it is not possible to maintain a 1.5-metre physical distance.

Prime Minister Janez Janša was a guest on A Talk with the Prime Minister broadcast on Nova24TV, where he talked about a potential second wave of the epidemic, international events, including the presidency of the Council of the EU, the upcoming Slovenian Statehood Day and other topical issues the viewers asked about.

Today, Prime Minister Janez Janša received the Doyen of the Diplomatic Corps in Slovenia, the Apostolic Nuncio to Slovenia, Archbishop Jean-Marie Speich. In their talks, they affirmed the importance of relations between the Republic of Slovenia and the Holy See, also in the light of two upcoming commemorations – the thirtieth anniversary of the Holy See’s recognition of Slovenia (2022) and the twentieth anniversary of the Agreement between the Republic of Slovenia and the Holy See on Legal Issues (2021).

Today Prime Minister Janez Janša attended an informal video-conference meeting of the European Council. At the meeting, the heads of government were briefed on the progress of the negotiations on future relations between the EU and the United Kingdom. The main topic of discussion was the new proposal for the multiannual financial framework and recovery instrument prepared by the European Commission. At the meeting the participants held a first exchange of views.

"Despite the increased number of coronavirus infections in recent days, we cannot yet talk about the second wave of the epidemic, but we are preparing for it," said Minister Gantar yesterday, emphasising Slovenia's commitment to controlling the epidemic.

Prime Minister Janez Janša attended a video conference of the leaders of the EU Member States and six Eastern Partnership countries (Ukraine, Moldova, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia).