POLITICS
LJUBLJANA - Prime Minister Borut Pahor said that 1 December, when the Lisbon Treaty entered into force, was an important day in the history of the EU as he received in Ljubljana on Tuesday the first full-time president of the European Council, Herman Van Rompuy. The former Belgian Prime Minister, who is on his second trip abroad after his appointment on 19 November, added that the main principles in his work would be "dialogue, unity and action". Herman Van Rompuy was also received by President Danilo Tuerk.
LJUBLJANA - Two deputies have confirmed they are parting ways with the Pensioners' Party (DeSUS) after a feud over the appointment of the new local government minister. Franc Znidarsic and Vili Rezman announced they would be independent MPs from now on. The pair made the announcement as the party went ahead with replacing Znidarsic as the head of the deputy group on Tuesday with Josko Godec. Znidarsic has been opposing the expulsion of Rezman from the group, which led to his replacement.
LJUBLJANA - The Labour, Family and Social Affairs Ministry has drafted a bill aimed at eliminating disability-based discrimination. The draft bill, presented on Tuesday, is to give the disabled equal opportunities in all areas of life, according to Minister Ivan Svetlik. The bill bans discrimination by public office holders, and regulates equal participation of the blind in proceedings, access to services and adaption of public buildings. It also regulates access to education, health care, housing, information, cultural events and public transport.
LJUBLJANA - The family law bill, equalising same-sex unions with other family unions and allowing adoptions by gay couples, which is headed for government approval, continues to stir controversy. NGO Iskreni.net announced a billboard campaign promoting traditional family values. The campaign dubbed "What Family Will Look Like in Future" will feature nine Slovenian families giving answer to this question. The Justice and Peace Commission at the Slovenian Bishops' Conference is meanwhile organising a panel on the new family law bill on Thursday.
BUSINESS & ECONOMY
LJUBLJANA - The transitional period in which broadcasters must make the switch from analogue to digital broadcasting began in Slovenia on Tuesday, running until 1 December 2010. Government officials have called on households to adjust for the switch by purchasing the necessary equipment. Analogue and digital signals will run side by side for the next year, when analogue will be taken offline. During the transitional period, digital broadcasts will be available on the first digital multiplex in Slovenia managed by public broadcaster RTV Slovenija, the head of the Information Society Directorate told the press in Ljubljana on Tuesday.
LJUBLJANA - Slovenian economist Joze Mencinger said in a lecture in the upper house of parliament Tuesday that Slovenia entered the economic crisis dependent on the EU and facing its own version of casino capitalism. The former Chancellor of Ljubljana University said that the period from independence until 2004 saw stable and balanced economic development, which was subsequently followed by an increasing dependency on credit. The problem that emerged from this is reflected foremost in the mounting deficit on Slovenia's current account of the balance of payments, he added.
LJUBLJANA - The CEO of Datalab, the only IT company listed on the Ljubljana Stock Exchange, told an interview with STA that Slovenian banks were not helping small businesses in the crisis, but were only intensifying their problems. Andrej Mertelj also expressed disappointment at the government crisis measures, noting that the full impact of the current situation with stiffened credit terms would show yet in the coming years.
SENOZECE - The SID development and export bank has granted a EUR 40m loan for development projects to Cimos, the Koper-based car parts maker. Cimos CEO Franc Krasovec and SID chairman Sibil Svilan signed the loan contract in Senozece on Tuesday. The loan is a part of the July deal between SID and the European Investment Bank (EIB), under which SID borrowed EUR 380m for funding of research, development and innovation in emissions and in energy efficiency. According to Svilan, 50% of the funds for the development project in Cimos will be covered by the EIB, and 35% by the SID.
LJUBLJANA - After ten straight days of losses and a mixed day on Monday, Slovenian blue chips rebounded on Tuesday led by financial shares. The SBI 20 benchmark index was up 0.68% to 4,207.67 points and the SBI TOP index of the seven major shares gained 0.63% to 1,013.16 points. The biggest gainer on the day was the NKBM bank, which was up 2.24% to EUR 12.35. Reinsurer Pozavarovalnica Sava added 1.84% to EUR 14.96, despite reporting a loss of EUR 6.6m on Monday.
