STA, 31 August 2020 - Slovenia recorded 18 new coronavirus infections from 588 tests performed on Sunday, fresh data from the government show.

The latest figures bring the total national case count to 2,883, of which 454 remain active, according to the tracker site covid-19.sledilnik.org.

A total of 25 Covid-19 patients are currently in hospital, three of them requiring intensive treatment, that is one more than the day before.

No new fatalities have been reported, leaving the national death toll from Covid-19 at 133.

Eight of the latest cases were recorded in Ljubljana, which has now 89 active cases out of a total of 518 recorded since March.

Another four were in Sevnica in the east and two more in Domžale near Ljubljana. Four other municipalities saw one new case each.

Three of the cases confirmed in the past week were among staff at the Ljubljana Oncology Institute, the country's main cancer treatment hospital.

The institute said none of the infected staff had been working with the patients so services involving patients were running undisrupted. The staff in contact with the infected colleagues tested so far have returned negative results.

So has the Kranj maternity hospital confirmed that one of its employees tested positive for Sars-CoV-2 on Saturday, with the tests taken on her contacts coming back negative.

The employee caught the virus in a domestic setting. She has not shown any symptoms of the novel disease and had been wearing personal protective equipment while working with the patients.

The employee is in self isolation and her contacts have been quarantined.

STA, 31 August 2020 - Slovenian police officers who will find themselves in danger will be able to use electroshock weapons against their attackers as of 1 September. The use of the new weapon will be very restricted and all procedures involving them will be recorded, the police has said.

Slovenia currently has 20 sets of the Taser X2 paralyser, and 237 experienced police officers have been trained to use them, the General Police Department said.

The weapon, which is used by police in most EU countries, will be available in Slovenia three years after the police tasks and powers act, which legalised them, was passed under the Miro Cerar government.

The conditions for use of Taser X2 will be strict, especially when it is used against vulnerable groups such as the elderly, children, pregnant women and the disabled, according to Vladimir Ilič from the General Police Department.

A police officer will be able to use the weapon against these groups of people only in circumstances that would also allow them to use firearms.

Experience from abroad has shown that with the right tactical approach, a police officer carrying an electroshock weapon can prevent the escalation of a situation and the use of a firearm, Ilič said.

Police officers will carry the paralyser in a way that it can be seen and will have to warn perpetrators before its use.

When turned on, the paralyser's light and two lasers will be on, while a sound warning is optional. The device can fire two small barbed darts intended to puncture the skin or clothes to administer the shock through a thin flexible wire.

The Taser X2 paralyser has a maximum power of 50,000 volts. Only 1.2 kilovolts is required to paralyse an attacker but the device regulates the power automatically, explained Matjaž Čuček for the General Police Department.

The electroshock weapons will be used together with a special camera that will automatically switch on to record police procedure 30 seconds before the firing, and a first aid kit to help the target.

Renata Rajapakse from the Health Ministry said that every person on whom the weapon would be used would be examined by a doctor.

All big police stations have received the new weapons, while one went to the special police forces.

During the passage of the bill paving the way for the use of the electroshock weapons, several NGO opposed them. The then Human Rights Ombudsman Vlasta Nussdorfer also expressed reservation.

STA, 31 August 2020 - Slovenia was hit by two storm waves on Sunday, with the most reports of damage coming from the west and north of the country. Hail storms with strong winds uncovered roofs, while fallen trees blocked roads, and caused damage to vehicles and buildings. People are still pumping up water from their basements.

The first storm wave came in the morning, hitting the municipalities of Brda, Kanal, Tolmin, Kobarid in Bovec the hardest. Firefighters immediately started repairing roofs and unblocking roads, as another front came in the afternoon, the civil protection commander for northern Primorska, Samo Kosmač, told the STA on Monday.

In the afternoon storms, several buildings were flooded, and small avalanches blocked some roads. The worst hit was the upper Soča Valley, where all local firefighters' units were activated and their efforts continue today.

Storms caused havoc around the country and estimates of damage are still pending.

STA, 28 August 2020 - After months of delays, first because of complaints in the contracting procedure and then due to the coronavirus pandemic, workers have finally started boring the second tube of the Karavanke Tunnel on the Slovenian side.

Turkish contractor Cengiz currently has 43 workers on site, a figure that is set to increase to 150 when boring is ramped up to a 24/7 cycle, according to Valentin Hajdinjak, the chairman of motorway company DARS.

Both Hajdinjak and Asim Cengiz, a member of the Cengiz board, told the press on Friday that the project, valued at just under EUR 100 million, will be completed on schedule and on budget. "Cengiz plans to complete the works before 2025," Asim Cengiz said.

Infrastructure Minister Jernej Vrtovec said this was "a great day for Slovenia, for the entire logistics sector and for neighbouring countries."

He also expressed the wish that Cengiz enlist as many Slovenian subcontractor as possible, which he said he had also briefly discussed with the company's representatives.

The boring starts two and a half years after DARS issued a public call. It took until 22 January this year before the contracting procedure was completed.

The second tube of the motorway tunnel is just under eight kilometres long, with the Slovenian section measuring 3.5 kilometres. On the Austrian side boring is well under way.

STA, 28 August 2020 - The merger of Dnevnik and Večer, the publishers of the third and fourth largest daily newspapers in Slovenia, respectively, as per 2019 data, has come to a halt, Dnevnik's owner Bojan Petan of publisher DZS and Večer's co-owner Uroš Hakl have confirmed.

Petan implied at Dnevnik's general assembly on Thursday that there were disagreements over ownership, whereas Hakl told the STA today that the reasons for putting the merger on hold were a matter of business.

According to Kristjan Verbič, the president of the VZMD association of small shareholders, Petan explained the situation in more detail at the meeting.

After the Competition Protection Agency (AVK) gave a green light for the merger in July 2019, the necessary proceedings were meant to be launched. Petan said at the time that the go-ahead was only the beginning of long-lasting and legally complex procedures though.

The break-up operation of the limited company Dnevnik was envisaged, pending a nod from its supervisors and stakeholders, said Verbič.

Newspaper Dnevnik would be turned into a subsidiary which would merge with Večer. Other Dnevnik editions would remain under the core company, which would not participate in the merger. Both newspapers were meant to continue being published as separate papers.

Petan, Dnevnik chairman, announced a meeting which would address the issue after the AVK green light, but such a discussion has not yet taken place. The merger was supposed to be finished by now though.

As quoted by Verbič, Petan explained on Thursday that the procedures got complicated after an independent value estimate of newspapers Dnevnik and Večer was requested. The estimate showed that Večer was worth some EUR 100,000 more than Dnevnik.

According to a previous agreement the companies would share ownership of the new entity called DV Mediji and Petan suggested Dnevnik contributed additional EUR 100,000. However, out of reasons unknown to him, Večer no longer agreed to that or to shared ownership and wanted a stronger share, said Verbič.

Petan told Dnevnik stakeholders on Thursday that the situation could be only the other way around since Dnevnik had been recording good results and had seen only a 2-3% drop in revenue.

He also highlighted that the AVK go-ahead remained, implying that the story could get an ending.

Rumours about the deal breakdown have been circulating, however Hakl has been denying any claims about that. Today, he was reticent about the situation, only saying that the procedure was put on ice.

Hakl later spoke to the STA to reject the allegation that the disagreements over ownership were the reason, saying instead that the true reason was an unrealistic appraisal of Dnevnik made on the basis of five-year business projections.

He said that these were made based on unrealistic costs of print and projections that revenue from advertisement marketing would grow by 10% a year.

"There is no media house globally which is capable of growing by 10% annually in advertisement marketing, let alone Dnevnik, which has recorded a noticeable trend of decreasing revenue from advertising," he was critical.

Hakl said he had no resentment and that Večer still thought that a merger made sense business-wise and that it would be a smart decision for the survival of both newspapers, "but in a professionally appropriate way".

The Maribor-based Večer, controlled by the no. 1 publisher Delo until 2014 when it was sold to entrepreneurs Hakl and Sašo Todorovič due to anti-trust concerns, has a circulation of about 19,000, according to 2019 data, and a strong subscriber base in the north-east of the country, while Dnevnik has a circulation of 21,000 and is considered more a central Slovenian or Ljubljana-based paper.

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Revised budget for 2020 projects deficit at 9.3% of GDP

LJUBLJANA - The government adopted a revised budget for 2020. With revenue down and expenditure soaring due to the coronavirus epidemic, the budget deficit is projected to stand at EUR 4.2 billion or 9.3% of GDP. Revenue is planned at EUR 9.2 billion, almost 15% lower than in the currently valid budget, and expenditure at EUR 13.4 billion, nearly 30% higher, the Government Communications Office said.

Slovenia confirms 31 new coronavirus cases for Saturday

LJUBLJANA - Slovenia registered 31 new cases of coronavirus on Saturday, a figure which marks a decline over the previous two days but is still fairly high for a weekend day. A total of 769 tests were performed. There are estimated to be some 450 active cases in the country, with 24 people in hospital with Covid-19, one more than in Friday, and two in intensive care, the same as the day before.

Serbia moved to yellow list, Croatia remains red-listed

LJUBLJANA - Serbia is no longer on the red list of high-risk countries and was moved to the yellow list, having more than 40 infected persons infected with coronavirus per 100,000 inhabitants. There is a quarantine requirement for travellers from countries on the yellow list, but there are many exemptions. Croatia remains on the red list, so quarantine is still required for most travellers returning from the country.

Janša, Vučić discuss W Balkans, Covid-19

BLED - Prime Minister Janez Janša held talks with Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić. The agenda included bilateral relations, the situation in Western Balkans and the situation regarding the coronavirus pandemic. The meeting came on the eve of the Bled Strategic Forum where Janša will host the Leaders' Panel at which Vučić will be one of the speakers.

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STA, 30 August 2020 - Slovenia registered 31 new cases of coronavirus on Saturday, a figure which marks a decline over the previous two days but is still fairly high for a weekend day. A total of 738 tests were conducted.

Just over 4% of all tests were positive, which is significantly higher than earlier in the week but still broadly in line with the trend since mid-August, according to data from the coronavirus tracker covid-19.sledilnik.org.

National Public Health Institute Recommends Masks for All Primary School Children

There are now estimated to be some 450 active cases in the country, with 24 people in hospital with Covid-19, one more than in Friday, and two in intensive care, the same as the day before.

New cases were recorded in 16 municipalities yesterday. The highest numbers were confirmed in Ljubljana (8) and Tržič (3), with two each in Šentjur, Kranj, Rogaška Slatina and Slovenske Konjice.

Serbia moved to yellow list, Croatia remains red-listed

STA, 30 August 2020 - Serbia is no longer on the red list of high-risk countries as of Sunday and has been moved to the yellow list, having more than 40 infected persons infected with coronavirus per 100,000 inhabitants. Croatia remains on the red list, so quarantine is still required for most travellers returning from the country.

There is a quarantine requirement for travellers from countries on the yellow list as well, but there are many exemptions.

There are no changes on the green list of 19 countries seen as being less dangerous. Almost all are in Europe.

The government made the decision on Saturday after assessing the epidemiological situation in the EU countries, Schengen zone, the Balkans and Italian regions, and the criteria for classification of countries based on the epidemiological situation of the National Institute of Public Health (NIJZ).

The cabinet also reviewed the Covid-19-related procedures at the border, and check points inside the country, and decided that the current regime will remain in place.

The latest statistics on coronavirus and Slovenia, and the latest police news on red, green and yellow list countries. All our stories on coronavirus and Slovenia. Can I transit Slovenia? Find out from the police...

STA, 28 August 2020 - Slovenia's health authorities have recommended that all primary school children wear face masks in corridors and shared premises as the new school year starts next week. The relevant minister has suggested that the government will respect any new recommendations the National Public Health Institute (NIJZ) may give.

The most recent recommendation from the NIJZ is an upgrade to the earlier recommendation that only students of the age of 12 and older were to wear face masks in shared premises in school.

The NIJZ has decided for the move because "the average daily number of confirmed cases in local transfer in the last seven days in the country exceeded 20", says Friday's press release.

It has also recommended that children up to and including the age of five do not use masks in shared premises in kindergartens, and that children aged 6-11 use them in healthcare institutions and in public transportation.

Children aged 12 and older should use face masks in accordance with the government ordinances valid for adults.

The NIJZ told the STA that these were recommendations for next week, and that instructions for the use of masks in schools would from now on be made weekly based on the epidemiological risk assessment.

Education Minister Simona Kustec told the STA earlier that as the epidemiological situation had deteriorated somewhat on Thursday, she would not be surprised if the NIJZ provided additional guidelines before the start of the new year. "If it does, we will simply need to respect them," she added.

The ministry has already informed primary schools and music schools about the new recommendations.

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This summary is provided by the STA:

37 new coronavirus infections in Slovenia on Friday

LJUBLJANA - A total of 1,328 coronavirus tests were conducted in Slovenia on Friday and 37 came back positive, the government said on Twitter today. Twenty-three Covid-19 patients were in hospital yesterday, two of them in intensive care. One person was discharged from hospital and no new fatalities were recorded.

Left warns against haste in passing defence investment plan

LJUBLJANA - The opposition Left warned on Saturday that Defence Minister Matej Tonin and the coalition New Slovenia (NSi) were dodging a public debate on the bill envisaging EUR 780 million in investment in the Slovenian Armed Forces (SAF). After the Left proposed a debate, the NSi moved to cut the time for debate to less than five days, the party said. Although Tonin of the NSi said he was "looking forward to a public debate" on the bill, the NSi filed a request for an emergency session of the parliamentary Defence Committee to be held on Thursday.

Nova24TV poll shows SDS going strong

LJUBLJANA - The latest poll commissioned by the private broadcaster Nova24TV shows the senior coalition Democrats (SDS) top the party ratings on 20.9% support, followed by the opposition Social Democrats (11.9%) and the Marjan Šarec List (10.2%).The opposition Left polled at 6.8%, followed by the coalition New Slovenia (NSi) at 3.1%, Pensioners' Party (DeSUS) at 2.6% and the opposition National Party (SNS) at 2.1%.

Friday anti-govt protest was peaceful, police say

LJUBLJANA - Friday's anti-government protests were peaceful with police detecting only one violation of the public assembly act. Some 4,000 people gathered for the rally, according to police data. The 19th weekly protest focussed on environmental issues, criticising the proposed new construction law and Environment Minister Andrej Vizjak, who according to the protesters turned the ministry into an anti-environment ministry.

EU Commission urges Slovenia to lower labour taxes

BRUSSELS, Belgium - The EU Commission has assessed that high labour taxation in Slovenia has a highly probable negative impact on the labour market and hence the country's GDP. The Slovenian government has been advised to reduce the tax burden from labour and introduce a more growth-friendly tax system. The Commission this week released a publication on labour taxation in Slovenia, which apart from the impact on the GDP also shows that effects of high labour taxes are even more profound in countries with population ageing and a decline in active population.

Insurers collect a record EUR 2.3bn in premiums last year

LJUBLJANA - Insurance companies operating in Slovenia last year collected a record EUR 2.3 billion in gross premiums, which is 7.2% more than in 2019, while damage payouts were up 3.2% to EUR 1.6 billion. More than 70% of the total gross insurance premiums and damage payouts were covered by the four largest insurance companies. In terms of the structure of the insurance market, 80% of the total gross insurance premiums was collected and 85% of the total damages was paid out to individuals, according to the data of the national Statistics Office.

Ski lift operators want extension of vouchers into winter season

LJUBLJANA/BOVEC - Since last winter season was disastrous because of lack of snow and the coronavirus epidemic, Slovenian ski lift operators would like the government to extend the validity of tourist vouchers into next year. They also warn that restricting the number of skiers at ski slopes would make their business non-profitable.

Highlights of Maribor art gallery on display

MARIBOR - The Maribor Art Gallery is opening an exhibition on Saturday showcasing the highlights of all of its collections so far. The crème de la crème exhibition will present a fusion of iconic artworks as well as more contemporary expressions of art. Artists stemming from north-eastern Slovenia will be in the spotlight.

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STA, 21 August 2020 - A wine fountain spurting the Dolenjska-grown wine Cviček was opened in Šmarjeta on Friday, a move designed to promote wine making and further boost tourism in the thermal retreat town. The ribbon was cut by President Borut Pahor, who said he was "in awe of the moment we're witnessing".

Pahor's office said the president was truly happy to be able to meet people after a long time. He expressed gratitude to mayors across the country who forged innovative plans for the future while facing the coronavirus pandemic in their communities.

Slovenia is a perfect fit for sustainable development, the president said, this is noticed by all visitors and makes the country better known abroad.

The fountain, modelled after a very popular beer fountain in Žalec, cost EUR 140,000, with about 80% of the funds coming from the EU regional development fund.

The fountain has four automated taps featuring Cviček and three other locally produced wines.