Janez

Ljubljana – Alenka Bratušek, the leader of the opposition party carrying her name, was confirmed as a member of the National Assembly on Wednesday to succeed late Franc Kramar following a session convened in his honour.

Ljubljana – A group of public figures from social and political spheres has called on politicians, media and opinion leaders to de-escalate tensions, bridge the divides and meet the current challenges together. They also warned about what they see as months-long political and media campaign that does not contribute to a more effective response to the pandemic.

Ljubljana – The Biathlon World Championships 2021 starts next week in Slovenia’s Pokljuka in what will be the biggest winter sports event in the country so far. Slovenian biathletes have their eyes set on the medals, Janez Ožbolt of the Slovenian Ski Association said ahead of the tournament.

Ljubljana – Two of Slovenia’s nine parliamentary parties have declined President Borut Pahor’s invitation to a joint meeting aimed at reaching a consensus on the need for the country to focus the epidemic, a post-pandemic recovery and the country’s EU presidency. Nevertheless, he has high expectations for the meeting.

Koper – Rallies were held across the country on Sunday as parents protested closure of schools after two regions slipped back into black tier last week. The government decided schools should return to remote teaching and kindergartens close on Monday in the two regions after pupils in grades one to three were allowed back in nine of 12 regions last week.

Ljubljana – Prime Minister Janez Janša has wondered in a Facebook post whether Slovenia will have a competitive edge in the fourth industrial revolution compared to countries where there are twice as many people studying science and technology than humanities, whereas in Slovenia the share of the former is 37% and 39% of the latter.

Ljubljana – The government has not yet okayed this year’s call for applications to enrol in university courses in what the Slovenian Student Organisation (ŠOS) sees as an encroachment upon tertiary education autonomy. The University of Ljubljana management thinks the procedure could be jeopardised, a risk Prime Minister Janez Janša dismissed.

Ljubljana – No major easing of anti-epidemic restrictions can be expected in the coming weeks, Prime Minister Janez Janša said on Friday, adding that the government would stick to the plan of easing adopted earlier this month, which means that schools and businesses might have to close again if the situation deteriorated.

Ljubljana – Prime Minister Janez Janša has said that he would nominate a new health minister when the MPs for the Pensioners’ Party (DeSUS), which recently left the government coalition, decide whether they will support the government or become opposition MPs. He said they have until Wednesday’s coalition meeting to decide.

Ljubljana – PM Janez Janša believes the first half of 2021 will be similar to 2020 in terms of the epidemic and economic recovery, while the second half should be much better. He also accepted the Manager Association’s offer for cooperation to improve productivity as he addressed its annual get-together, which was held online on Thursday.