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House Rejects Proposal on Introducing New Ways of Emission Trading

Bratislava, February 10 (TASR) - Slovakia's emission quotas will continue to be sold in a direct manner, rather than via so-called climate exchanges or alternatively via a mediator chosen by a selection procedure, as Parliament on Wednesday rejected a proposal to amend the act on emissions-trading. According to opposition SDKU-DS party MP Tomas Galbavy, who submitted… read more

Amendments to Law on EIA Passed to Second Reading

Bratislava, February 10 (TASR) - Legislative amendments to the law on Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), which should give the general public a bigger say in decision-making, were passed to their second reading in Parliament on Wednesday. The Environment Ministry claims that it has included all the European Union's demands, and the amendment is due to be passed by… read more

Lipsic\'s Amendment Rejected, MPs and Judges Still Enjoy Full Immunity

Bratislava, February 10 (TASR) - The possibility of launching criminal proceedings against an MP will still be conditioned by approval from Parliament after the House on Wednesday rejected a constitutional amendment submitted by Christian Democrat vice-chairman Daniel Lipsic aimed at narrowing MPs' immunity. Lipsic's proposal was supported by 63 out of the 142 MPs present,… read more

FinMin Improves Forecast of Slovak GDP Growth in 2010 to 2.8 percent

Bratislava, February 10 (TASR) - The Finance Ministry has revised its previous forecast for growth in the Slovak economy in 2010 to 2.8 percent, up from the 1.9 percent expected in the autumn of 2009, TASR learnt on Wednesday. "The changes in the prognosis are mainly due to improvements in expectations concerning the external environment, improvements in indicators of… read more

Average Monthly Salary in December Rose Most Y-o-Y in Industry - by 4.9 %

Bratislava, February 10 (TASR) - Average nominal monthly salaries in December 2009 rose fastest year-on-year in industry - by 4.9 percent, the Statistics Office reported on Wednesday. Average nominal monthly salaries also increased in accommodation - by 1.7 percent year-on-year, in restaurants and pubs - by 1.5 percent, and in retail - by 1.1 percent y-o-y. Conversely,… read more

Most-Hardened Criminals Still Banned from Casting Votes in Elections

Bratislava, February 9 (TASR) - Incarcerated persons save the ones convicted for extremely serious crimes will be allowed to cast their votes in parliamentary and europarliamentary elections as of March 2010 due to the Act on Elections amendment passed by the Slovak Parliament on Tuesday. The amendment as such is the aftermath of Constitutional Court verdict reached in… read more

Doctors: Recovery of Haiti to Take Three Decades

Bratislava, February 9 (TASR) - Slovak paramedics and doctors who provided relief to earthquake-stricken Haiti expect that the reconstruction process of the country will take some 30 years, Tropical Institute director Vladimir Krcmery said after his meeting with Slovak Premier Robert Fico on Tuesday. "Recovery of the country will be a lot harder than the recovery operation… read more

NDS: Janis\'s Doubts About Tests of Road-toll System Unfounded

Bratislava, February 9 (TASR) - The National Highway Company (NDS) disagrees with the claims made by SDKU-DS caucus leader Stanislav Janis that NDS found several flaws in the electronic road-toll system before the system was launched on January 1, NDS general director Igor Choma said at a press conference Tuesday evening. "It must be noted that any doubts about the tests… read more

Janis: Media Have Overblown SDKU\'s Talks with Rightist Parties

Bratislava, February 9 (TASR) - The media have overblown the informal talks of opposition SDKU-DS election leader hopefuls Ivan Miklos and Iveta Radicova with Freedom and Solidarity (SaS), Most-Hid and the Civic Conservative Party (OKS) regarding possible post-election cooperation, SDKU-DS caucus chairman Stanislav Janis told TASR on Tuesday. "It's informal discussions… read more

Lajcak: Slovakia Supports Moldavia in its Pro-European Policies

Bratislava, February 9 (TASR) - Slovakia supports the Moldovan Government and the pro-European policies and reforms it has committed itself to, Slovak Foreign Affairs Minister Miroslav Lajcak said after meeting his Moldovan counterpart Iurie Leanca on Tuesday. "We understand the processes that Moldavia is currently undergoing, because we went through the same path," said… read more

SDKU-DS: NDS after Tests Confirmed that Road-Toll System Had Flaws

Bratislava, February 9 (TASR) - In a document drawn up shortly before the road-toll system was launched on January 1, the National Highway Company (NDS) listed several faults with the system that had been revealed in testing, opposition SDKU-DS caucus leader Stanislav Janis said at a press conference on Tuesday. "They launched the toll (system) knowingly, based on this… read more

Gasparovic: Relations Between Serbia and Slovakia Should Strengthen

Bratislava, February 9 (TASR) - Relations between Serbia and Slovakia are good and amicable, and it's in this spirit that the two countries should proceed to strengthen also ties in the fields of trade and commerce, culture, education and tourism, Slovak President Ivan Gasparovic said at his Tuesday's meeting with Serbian Parliamentary Chairman Slavica Djukic-Dejanovic. … read more

Petrikova to Report to Parliamentary Committee About Judges\' Lawsuits

Bratislava, February 9 (TASR) - Justice Minister Viera Petrikova (LS-HZDS) on Tuesday was invited by the Parliamentary Constitutional Committee to report about the steps her ministry is conducting in the case of the mass lawsuits filled by hundreds of judges against alleged discrimination in salaries compared to Special Court judges. The committee decided on Petrikova's… read more

Bugar: If Broad Pre-election Coalition Emerges, Most-Hid Wants In

Bratislava, February 9 (TASR) - Most-Hid chairman Bela Bugar showed restraint at a press conference on Tuesday when it came to the possible formation of a broad pre-election coalition of opposition parties before the general election set for June 12. If there were a will among all opposition parties to sign such an agreement, Most-Hid wouldn't want to remain on the sidelines,… read more

Caplovic: Croatia Should Be Allowed to Join European Union Soon

Bratislava, February 9 (TASR) - Deputy Prime Minister Dusan Caplovic on Tuesday met with a delegation from the Croatian foreign affairs parliamentary committee to talk about Croatia's EU-integration ambitions, Caplovic's spokesman Michal Kalinak told TASR on the same day. Caplovic expressed his conviction that Croatia will become an EU member, and also his hope that this… read more