NEWS

Prime Minister Janša: "Do not undermine Slovenia!"

The Prime Minister of the Republic of Slovenia, Janez Janša, today responded to the developments related to the requests to call referendums on the Act Regulating Measures to Strengthen the Stability of Banks and on the Slovenian Sovereign Holding Act. In his statement to the press, the Prime Minister pointed out that this was a unique case in Slovenia's history, where everything was being done to prevent the enforcement of a decision adopted by the National Assembly. He added that the Government had devoted considerable time and effort to coordinate the acts as widely as possible, both with the opposition and the unions. Finally, he called upon all the signatories of the remaining valid request for a referendum on the Slovenian Sovereign Holding Act to rethink the matter and withdraw the initiative, to ask themselves what price the whole country would have to pay for this. 

 

"Few are the acts that were coordinated to such an extent by any government as this act was by us," the Prime Minister emphasised and noted that in July the Government and the opposition reached an agreement that the Government would disseminate the joint act, which was in the adoption procedure, and set up working groups for the coordination of the text. He said that twelve substantive proposals were taken into account in the Slovenian Sovereign Holding Act. Furthermore, the text was coordinated with the OECD, revised by the International Monetary Fund, and negotiated with the unions in the energy sector, which had submitted a referendum initiative. 

 

With regard to the calls of the Slovenian President, the Prime Minister said that they were too late and that Slovenia paid a high price for the coordination of these acts, as owing to Slovenia's failure to adopt measures its credit ratings were downgraded. "We have received a loan on the promise that we will fulfil these measures," he stressed and added that this was probably the last time Slovenia was believed. He also explained that the proposal of the Slovenian President to freeze the enforcement of the acts is pointless, which is also the opinion of the Government Office for Legislation.

 

With regard to the calls of the president of the opposition party Positive Slovenia, the Prime Minister said that, "there is no point coordinating with someone who does not want coordination," and that a series of promises had already been broken. 

 

Finally he said that the Government would submit a request for the review of the constitutionality of the referendum initiative for the Slovenian Sovereign Holding Act. However, he called upon all the signatories to think about the reasonableness of the request when the Government had already reached an agreement with the unions on the withdrawal and implementation of the act. He stressed that many of the adopted measures had been favourably assessed at the international level but that such actions were damaging this reputation. "We do not expect help, however, we do implore – do not undermine Slovenia," the Prime Minister concluded.