At the press conference today, Prime Minister of the Republic of Slovenia Janez Janša, together with the Minister for Local Self-Government and Regional Policy, Dr Ivan Žagar, outlined the reasons for decentralising Slovenia and establishing regions. Prime Minister Janša explained that regions had been a development project that this Government had strived for throughout its term of office – launched in good time, in a responsible manner and at full capacity.   He went on to add that regional legislation, coordinated in good time, was the result of this work.

 

(Photo: Kristina Kosec/Bobo)

 

According to Prime Minister Janez Janša, Slovenia needs regions in order to ensure faster and more uniform development, since regions represent a new development tool enabling more rapidly developing regions to continue at their pace and regions that lag behind to progress. “Regions as a development tool will be of benefit both to central Slovenia and to areas outside central Slovenia,” said the Prime Minister, adding that excessive centralisation had indeed benefited no one.  Should current development, migratory and infrastructure trends continue, it would be realistic to expect that, in ten years’ time, the development of some Slovenian regions would lag significantly behind central Slovenia, while central Slovenia would be choked with traffic and faced with problems related to town planning and public utilities.

 

The Slovenian Prime Minister pointed out that regions were indeed a supra-party project; after all, amendments to the Constitution had also been supported by the opposition.  He went on by stating that it was only after the matter had been coordinated between parties in April 2007 that the Government continued the necessary procedures and obtained the opinion of local communities. The vast majority of them were in favour of Slovenia’s regionalisation. The Prime Minister expressed regret that the opposition had subsequently changed its position and withdrawn its support for the project for political reasons. “We deeply regret that the narrow political interests of a certain party have prevailed over interest in the development of the whole country,” added the Prime Minister.

 

(Photo: Kristina Kosec/Bobo)

 

By calling a consultative referendum on the establishment of regions, the National Assembly has, according to the Prime Minister, enabled the Government to draw up, during its present term of office, a new legal proposal on the establishment of regions, which will take full account of the results of referendums. “Should the result be negative, we will find another solution that will suit the will of citizens expressed in these referendums,” stressed the Prime Minister. He further noted that the Government will welcome any result, since it will contribute to drawing up a new legal proposal for regions, one that will respect the will of citizens.

 

Prime Minister Janez Janša also responded to the Ljubljana Mayor’s call for a boycott of the referendum, stressing, in this regard, that in drawing the regional map, the Government had taken into consideration the proposal that had been drafted and officially confirmed by the City Council of Ljubljana. “From this point of view, it is totally unreasonable of the Mayor of Ljubljana to call for a boycott now, after the matter has been taken into account and coordinated,” maintained the Prime Minister.