What follows is a weekly review of events involving Slovenia, as prepared by the STA.
If you’d like to keep up on the daily headlines then follow those here, or get all our stories in your feed on Facebook.
FRIDAY, 8 October
LJUBLJANA - The coalition New Slovenia (NSi) said it was willing to talk an early election with its coalition partners under the condition that the government completes the EU presidency and adopts the national budgets for 2022-2023. NSi leader Matej Tonin said an early election would be a reasonable price to pay to calm the passions in the country.
LJUBLJANA - Three environmental NGOs filed a suit against the infrastructure and environment ministries over an energy permit issued for the second unit of the Krško Nuclear Power Plant (NEK). The organisations consider the energy permit issued in July to the state-owned investor Gen Energija illegal.
LJUBLJANA - The Supreme State Prosecution expressed concern over the government's decision not to honour the ruling by the Administrative Court on the appointment procedure of Slovenia's delegated prosecutors and instead issue a new call for applications. It said the government was clearly in violation of the articles the Constitution which deal with the rule of law and the right to judicial protection.
TUHELJ, Croatia - The prime ministers of Slovenia and Croatia, Janez Janša and Andrej Plenković, agreed bilateral relations are good as they took part in an international conference on tourism. Janša pointed to opportunities for cooperation in joint investments, and welcomed Croatia's imminent entry into the eurozone.
LJUBLJANA - The Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GZS) called on the government to take urgent action in the face of the sharp rise in energy prices. It asked for short-term measures such as reduction of certain levies on electricity and gas, and long-term measures, including immediate implementation of planned and ongoing projects.
LJUBLJANA - The Supreme Court announced its decision that issuing penalties for the failure to wear a face mask in enclosed public spaces during the Covid-19 epidemic as a minor offence has no legal basis.
SATURDAY, 9 October
LJUBLJANA - The opposition Alenka Bratušek Party (SAB) adopted a new programme at a party congress. The 15-point platform revolves around the welfare state supported by a strong economy, democracy and respect for the rule of law.
ZAGREB, Croatia - The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) expressed solidarity with journalists working at the STA and public broadcaster RTV Slovenija as it urged the government to stop contributing to an environment in which verbal and physical harassment of journalists has become par for the course.
BERGAMO, Italy - Slovenian star cyclist Tadej Pogačar wrapped up the season in style by winning the last big race, Il Lombardia. The UAE Team Emirates rider claimed victory after winning his second straight Tour de France and the Liege-Bastogne-Liege this season.
SUNDAY, 10 October
LJUBLJANA - Slovenia called on the countries that still have the death penality to fully abolish it on World Day Against the Death Penalty. The death penalty, which Slovenia firmly opposes is inhumane, cruel, demining and final form of punishment, the Foreign Ministry said.
LJUBLJANA - Ljubo Bavcon, professor emeritus of penal law at the Ljubljana Faculty of Law, died aged 97. Bavcon is considered one of the most prominent legal experts of the second half of the 20th century.
MONDAY, 11 October
LJUBLJANA - Health Minister Janez Poklukar announced the government would follow the recommendation of the national advisory committee on immunisation to use the Pfizer vaccine for under 30-year-olds. In general, the use of mRNA vaccines are recommended over viral vector vaccines.
LJUBLJANA - The parliamentary Culture Committee debated media ownership and concentration in Slovenia, urging the Financial Administration to examine deals in the media conglomerate controlled by businessman Martin Odlazek from the past five years. It urged the Culture Ministry to draft legislation to prevent media concentration.
LJUBLJANA - Holding Slovenske Elektrarne (HSE), the country's largest electricity producer, announced it would enter the retail electricity market by signing after it signed an agreement to acquire a 51% stake in ECE, a company created in a merger of Elektro Celje and Elektro Gorenjska.
TUESDAY, 12 October
LJUBLJANA - Foreign Minister Anže Logar assured his Bosnian counterpart Bisera Turković of Slovenia's support for Bosnia-Herzegovina's EU accession process, including when it comes to reforms the country needs to adopt to join the bloc. Turković said her country was ready for EU candidate status.
BRDO PRI KRANJU - The informal meeting of the EU health ministers called for as unified as possible criteria for the implementation of the recovered-vaccinated-tested rule. European Commissioner for Health and Food Safety Stella Kyriakides endorsed the call.
LUXEMBOURG, Luxembourg -EU agriculture ministers chaired by Slovenia's Jože Podgoršek reached a political agreement on the total allowable catch in the Baltic Sea next year, which would cut the catch for some fish stocks. Podgoršek said the agreement was balancing the interests and socio-economic needs of the Baltic fishing communities with the long-term sustainability of fish stocks in the region.
LJUBLJANA - Centre-left opposition parties announced a motion to oust Interior Minister Aleš Hojs over violent crackdown on protests, and politicisation of the police force. Hojs said he had not been acquainted with the content so he would not comment at this stage.
BRUSSELS, Belgium - Ten EU countries, Slovenia included, asked the EU Commission to recognise nuclear power as a low-carbon energy source that should be part of the Union's transition towards climate neutrality. PM Janez Janša said increasing production at nuclear power plants in Europe was essential to securing sufficient supply and achieving carbon-free society by 2050.
LJUBLJANA - The council of the Pensioners' Party (DeSUS) adopted a document in which it it denies any further support to the government. The party's MPs, which have been at loggerheads with the government for nearly a year, said they would continue to vote as they wish.
IDRIJA - The government expressed support for an initiative by ten automotive suppliers to form a partnership with the government and scientists in the field of green mobility whose ultimate goal is to increase total annual sales of the automotive industry in Slovenia from EUR 3 billion today to EUR 5 billion by 2030.
LJUBLJANA - Petrol, Slovenia's largest energy company, announced it would significantly increase the prices of electricity and natural gas on 1 December due to higher energy prices in international markets. Power is to go up by 30% and of natural gas by 12%.
WEDNESDAY, 13 October
LJUBLJANA - A fact-finding mission of the European Parliament started its visit to Slovenia with the head of the delegation, Dutch MEP Sophie in 't Veld (Renew), saying their goal was to gather facts not bring down the government. The mission's focus is the rule of law and media freedom.
LJUBLJANA - The parliamentary inquiry into alleged political interference in the police force conducted first interviews, hearing from the former leadership of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) about pressures during supervisions over the work of the NBI, as well as abut dismissals and reassignments under the current government.
BRUSSELS, Belgium - Prime Minister Janez Janša outlined the priorities of Slovenia's EU presidency to the European Committee of the Regions, highlighting post-Covid recovery, green transition and the EU's strategic autonomy, while also touching on subsidiarity. He argued for a greater degree of inclusion of local and regional communities.
LJUBLJANA - President Borut Pahor indicated that one of the four candidates for Constitutional Court judge may have a chance to be appointed by the National Assembly. "There are indications of sufficient support," he said of Rok Svetlič, an professor on philosophy of law.
NOVO MESTO - Revoz, the Slovenian subsidiary of Renault, announced it would scale down production over the uncertain situation in the car industry, switching from two to one and a half shifts in mid-November. As a result around 350 of the company's more than 2,400 workers will lose their jobs.
LJUBLJANA - Tensions ran high as opponents of Covid-19 restrictions took to the stress for the fifth consecutive week, disrupting traffic for several hours. A water cannon was at the ready as the police sought to disperse the crowd but was not used. Unlike the week before the protest passed off peacefully.
THURSDAY, 14 October
LJUBLJANA/BRUSSELS, Belgium - Prime Minister Janez Janša faced criticism after publishing a tweet implying that many members of the EU Parliament were "Soros puppets". European Parliament President David Sassoli called on Janša to cease the provocations. Janša tweeted, and then deleted, an image with the heading "13 of the 226 known Soros puppets in the EU parliament". Several MEPs accused him of anti-Semitism.
LJUBLJANA - The government got acquainted with the current price trends in energy markets and decided not to take any action for now. Infrastructure Minister Jernej Vrtovec said Slovenia was on the safe side for now and action would be taken if necessary.
LJUBLJANA - The Prosecution Council again rejected the government's stance that the first procedure for the appointment of European delegated prosecutors was not lawful and cannot be revisited. It said it did not intend to come up with new candidates for Slovenia's two posts in the European Public Prosecutor's Office (EPPO), which means it is effectively blocking a new call.
LJUBLJANA - The Slovenian and Slovakian presidents, Borut Pahor and Zuzana Čaputova, praised bilateral relations as excellent as Čaputova paid an official visit. They stressed the role of cooperation at bilateral and EU levels to address social, political and economic challenges, and welcomed the EU-Western Balkans summit.
LJUBLJANA - Srebrna Nit, an association campaigning for dignified old age, presented a bill to legalise assisted death in Slovenia. The NGO said their proposal would only permit assisted suicide, while euthanasia would only be possible as an exception. They plan to start collecting voter signatures after a period of public consultation.
