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Sulik Decides to Cut Financing For Caucuses By Half

Bratislava, January 7 (TASR) - Parliamentary Speaker Richard Sulik has decided to cut the financing for parliamentary caucuses by half, so they will cost the Parliament only €5,250 per month as of January instead of original €10,050, said Parliament's Office head Michal Niznan on Friday. "This is another way for Parliament how to save money," he said. The… read more

Radicova: It\'s Not Easy to Reach Agreements and Difficult to Keep Them

Bratislava, January 6 (TASR) - Carrying out the Prime Minister's function has taught me to understand that agreements aren't reached easily and that keeping them is even more difficult sometimes, Prime Minister Iveta Radicova has said in an interview for TASR. Radicova was speaking about situations when the four Coalition parties have agreed on something, but the result… read more

Radicova: It\'s Not Easy to Reach Agreements and Difficult to Keep Them

Bugar: Berenyi Risking Too Much by Applying for Hungarian Citizenship

Bratislava, January 5 (TASR) - Chairman of the currently extra-parliamentary ethnic-Hungarian SMK party Jozsef Berenyi set a bad example for his party colleagues when he officially filed for Hungarian citizenship, knowing that he would lose his Slovak one as a result, said Bela Bugar, chairman of Slovak-Hungarian reconciliation party Most-Hid. In response to Berenyi's… read more

Smer Respects Decision on SDKU Financing Case, But Has Own Opinion

Bratislava, January 5 (TASR) - The opposition Smer-SD party respects the decision of the Special Prosecutor's Office to halt the investigation into the coalition SDKU-DS party's financial practices, even though Robert Fico's party reserves its own opinion on the matter, Smer spokesperson Silvia Glendova said on Wednesday. However, the party won't comment on the decision… read more

Lipsic to Put More Police on Beat in Areas With Higher Crime Levels

Jarovnice, January 4 (TASR) – Areas with higher levels of crime will soon see more police officers on the beat, Interior Minister Daniel Lipsic announced on Tuesday during a working trip to Jarovnice in Sabinov District (Presov region). Slovakia's Police Corps are to beef up police patrols in line with a newly organised structure as of January 1. "The objective is make… read more

SNS: Smer Scared of Its Own Property Disclosure Act

Bratislava, January 4 (TASR) - By suggesting changes to its own law on origin of property disclosure, the Smer-SD party is making it clear that it's afraid of the law that it promoted itself, according to a statement issued by Andrej Danko, first vice-chairman of the fellow opposition Slovak National Party (SNS), on Tuesday. SNS spokesperson Jana Benkova added for TASR… read more

Radicova and Dzurinda Agree on Functioning of Council for EU Affairs

Bratislava, January 4 (TASR) - Prime Minister Iveta Radicova and Foreign Affairs Minister Mikulas Dzurinda (both SDKU-DS) have agreed on a dual-level system of functioning for the Government's ministerial council for European Union affairs, Radicova's spokesman Rado Bato told TASR on Tuesday. In effect this means that major political decisions will be co-ordinated by… read more

President Gasparovic Presents State Awards to 15 Slovaks

Bratislava, January 3 (TASR) - Marking the 18th anniversary of the creation of the modern Slovak Republic (on January 1, 1993), President Ivan Gasparovic on Monday bestowed state awards on 15 of Slovakia's public figures for their contributions to the spheres of culture, science and sport. During the ceremony, which took place in the old parliament building in Bratislava,… read more

Zemkova Halts Bonuses and Signing of Contracts at RTS

Bratislava, January 3 (TASR) - Radio and Television of Slovakia (RTS) interim director Miroslava Zemkova on Monday decided that the institution in its current situation won't pay out any bonuses that aren't prescribed by law. Zemkova has also put a halt to all moves aimed at purchasing property or hiring new employees in line with a stopgap budget announced on January… read more

IVO Survey: Public Concerns Appear to Have Shiften Since 2010 Election

Bratislava, January 3 (TASR) - Several significant shifts took place in the minds of Slovaks as of 2010 that may be related to the change in government following the general election in June, indicates an Public Affairs Institute (IVO) survey released on Monday. IVO in November asked people about what they thought were the most serious problems faced by society, and compared… read more

Radicova to Miss State Awards Ceremony Due to Father\'s Death

Bratislava, January 3 (TASR) - Prime Minister Iveta Radicova on Monday morning apologised for the fact that she will miss the ceremony later in the day at which President Ivan Gasparovic will present state awards. "Her sorrow at her father's death on Sunday has prevented her from attending this significant event. [The premier] sincerely congratulates all the people receiving… read more

Jurzyca: Gov\'t Careful when Permitting Start-ups of Private Universities

Bratislava, January 2 (TASR) - The Government is very careful when giving permits to private universities, Education Minister Eugen Jurzyca (SDKU-DS) has told TASR. "This is due to the risk of the 'inflation' of university degrees," he said, adding that the issue doesn't concern state money as private universities don't get any - apart from scholarships. According… read more

Radicova: Credibility of Coalition Parties More Important Than Numbers

Bratislava, January 2 (TASR) - The performance of a coalition doesn't primarily depend on the number of its members, as it only takes one coalition partner to cause havoc, Prime Minister Iveta Radicova (SDKU-DS) has told TASR in an interview. It's the credibility of the partners that matters most, she added. Radicova pointed out that there have already been Coalitions… read more

RTS New Interim Director Zemkova Decided about RTS Makeshift Budget

Bratislava, January 1 (TASR) - Makeshift budget and appointing deputy directors will be my first steps on the post of Radio and Television Slovakia (RTS) head, said Miroslava Zemkova, who was appointed RTS interim director on Saturday. RTS as a new public service institution came into existence on Saturday following merger of the Slovak Television (STV) and the Slovak… read more