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Kia Motors Employees to Stay Home Over Holiday Season

Teplicka nad Vahom, December 23 (TASR) - Kia Motors Slovakia has planned a Christmas vacation for its employees working in Teplicka nad Vahom factory (Zilina region) from December 24-January 6, TASR learned from KMS spokesman Dusan Dvorak on Wednesday. "This includes the majority of employees. However, some employees will need to come to work also over the holidays, namely… read more

Industrial Prices Keep On Falling In November

Bratislava, December 23 (TASR) - The year-on-year drop in industrial prices continued in November, with agricultural products and construction materials getting cheaper as well, TASR learned from the Statistics Office on Wednesday. According to the Stats Office, it's only construction sector prices that have become gone up. The prices set by industry manufacturers increased… read more

Kanik: Gov\'t Intervention in 2nd Pension Pillar Has Cost Each Saver €90

Bratislava, December 23 (TASR) - A civil association called Saver (Sporitel) accused the Robert Fico-led government on Wednesday of hampering pension management companies (DSSs) in doing business with via a legislative amendment and thus having deprived savers of their private retirement accounts of some €90 apiece so far. "The Government is depriving workers in this… read more

Traffic Jams Likely at Border Crossings due to Toll System Introduction

Bratislava, December 23 (TASR) - It can be expected that there will be traffic jams as of January 1 at Slovak border crossings, as lorries will be registering for the new Slovak electronic road toll system, it was announced on Wednesday. TASR was told by the National Highway Company (NDS) CEO Igor Choma that special contact places have been established as well in order… read more

Bratislava Region Governor and MRPs Swear Their Oath of Office

Bratislava, December 23 (TASR) - Bratislava region's Governor Pavol Freso and the 44 regional (VUC/Higher Territorial Unit) MRPs swore an oath in Primatial Palace in Bratislava on Wednesday. Freso in his short speech promised to lead the region in such a way as to be helpful to all the region's inhabitants. The first VUC session is set to take place on January 22, 2010.… read more

Prosecutors Again Probe Ex-SPF Deputy Chief over Velky Slavkov

Bratislava, December 23 (TASR) - Prosecution against ex-Slovak Land Fund (SPF) deputy director-general Helena Osuska was resumed after being halted when her conduct in the controversial 2007 transfer of land at Velky Slavkov (High Tatra Mountains) was not found to be of a criminal nature, Prosecutor General Dobroslav Trnka said on Wednesday. "I have found (the halting… read more

Caplovic: Tax Allowances for Investments into Research Should Be Tried

Bratislava, December 23 (TASR) - State should consider tax allowances for companies investing into research and development, TASR was told by Deputy Premier Dusan Caplovic on Wednesday. He said that legislation would have to change, as the flat tax now doesn't enable such allowances. Companies then could decide for themselves what areas they would invest in for innovations… read more

Slovaks Made 2.308 Million Short- and Long-Term Trips in 3Q09

Bratislava, December 23 (TASR) - Slovaks made some 2.308 million short- and long-term trips home and abroad in the third quarter of 2009, 10.1 percent less than in the same period of last year, the Slovak Statistics Office reports on Wednesday. The total number of nights spend on such trips also decreased - by 16.9 percent. The lower number of trips made was caused… read more

Justice Ministry to Submit Amendment to Criminal Code In January

Bratislava, December 22 (TASR) - The Justice Ministry will submit a draft amendment to the Criminal Code at the Government session in January 2010 with an aim of introducing criminal liability for corporate entities, ministry spokesman Michal Jurci told TASR on Tuesday. "Slovakia needs to meet its international obligations. The Spanish model is an inspiration for Slovakia,… read more

National Highway Company Announces Three Motorway Tenders

Bratislava, December 22 (TASR) - The National Highway Company (NDS) has announced three tenders for motorway construction, TASR learned from the Official Bulletin of the European Union on Tuesday. One tender involves the second phase of the D1 motorway construction work, specifically the section between Sverepec-Vrtizer (Trencin region), with the estimated commission… read more

Private Rectors See Colleague\'s Resignation as Result of Discrimination

Bratislava, December 22 (TASR) - The Association of Rectors of Private Higher Education Institutions described the resignation of the rector of St. Elizabeth's Health and Social Work Higher Education Institute Vladimir Krcmery earlier on Tuesday as being the result of the Education Ministry's concerted discriminatory push against certain private institutions based on rigid and… read more

Meciar to Meet Fruni in Prison to Discuss Non-banking Companies

Bratislava, December 22 (TASR) - LS-HZDS chairman and lawmaker Vladimir Meciar plans to meet and quiz in jail Vladimir Fruni, the ex-chief of non-banking companies Horizont and BMG Invest who was convicted of defrauding thousands of clients of half a billion euros after the companies went bust in 2002. Meciar, who said that he hopes to clear up much of the fuzziness… read more

Vazny: European Investment Bank Confirms Validity of D1 Highway Loan

Bratislava, December 22 (TASR) - The European Investment Bank (EIB) has confirmed the validity of a €1 billion loan for the construction of Slovakia's D1 motorway, said Transport Minister Lubomir Vazny (Smer-SD) on Tuesday. The highway is part of the first public-private partnership package. Talks between Slovakia and the EIB regarding technical, environmental and financial… read more

Vazny: Blockade of Border Crossings Has to Be Lawful

Bratislava, December 22 (TASR) - The threatened blockade of border crossings on January 3 by transport companies, who are demanding discounts on road-toll tariffs, could end up in the courts if it isn't carried out in line with the law, warned Transport Minister Lubomir Vazny on Tuesday. "Either it will have the requisites of a strike and the blockade will be in line… read more

Matica Slovenska Calls for Preservation of Minority Funding in Hungary

Martin, December 22 (TASR) - Slovakia's foremost cultural organisation Matica Slovenska (MS) issued an appeal to relevant Hungarian institutions to prevent their country from curtailing resources in 2010 for its ethnic minorities, including the Slovak one, in the spheres of culture, media and information. Plans to cut such resources have been reported to Matica by the… read more