MORNING NEWS HIGHLIGHTS - Tuesday, April 15, 2025 - 9 a.m.

TASR brings a quick morning overview of the most important events seen in Slovakia on the previous day (Monday, April 14): BRATISLAVA - The transaction tax, which has been in effect since April 1, should be scrapped, President Peter Pellegrini told the Vizio Energo conference in Bratislava on Monday. "Tax should always be paid on something, either on profits, turnover or added value. I graduated in economics, but I really can't answer people, citizens, my friends who ask me why, when they send a salary to their employee, or they return an excess tax payment to an employee, they still have to pay tax on it," said Pellegrini. According to the head of state, this tax makes no economic sense. "I think that if the state wants to tax something more, it should introduce a greater progressive element in taxation or tax some other segments that aren't subject to taxation at the moment, or tax them more significantly," he said. BRATISLAVA - The conviction of State-supported Rental Housing Agency (ASPNB) director Eva Lisova has been erased, and so she should be viewed as innocent and blameless, Premier Robert Fico (Smer-SD) has posted on a social network in reaction to statements by opposition politicians regarding her. "I was shocked that no one stood up for the ASPNB director when attacked by opposition MPs for being legally punished by a court in the past. Her conviction expunged, she now has a clean [criminal] record, and we must regard her as innocent and blameless," said the premier. BRATISLAVA - The State Institute for Drug Control (SUKL) is open to professional discussion conducted with respect for scientific knowledge, SUKL spokesperson Lucia Balazikova has told TASR in reaction to statements made by Government Proxy for Investigating COVID-19 Pandemic Management and MP Peter Kotlar (Slovak National Party/SNS) at a news conference last Thursday (April 10). However, Kotlar hasn't yet substantiated his claims with scientific evidence, stated SUKL, adding that a photo of unknown origin and emotional personal attacks will change nothing about that. "SUKL views it as its duty to provide the public with verified and understandable information on the regulation and safety of vaccines within the full context of scientific knowledge. We also consider it our duty to keep the core of public discussion on a professional level - at least at the level of verifiable facts," said Balazikova. BRATISLAVA - The opposition Progressive Slovakia (PS) is willing to add the signatures of its MPs to an amending proposal that would scrap the transaction tax for certain entities, PS leader Michal Simecka told a news conference on Monday in reaction to junior governing Slovak National Party (SNS) leader Andrej Danko's statement regarding his proposal to drop the tax. "We're ready to take any steps in Parliament to have the tax scrapped. If Andrej Danko doesn't have enough MPs to submit the amending proposal, we're offering these signatures to him, and, naturally, our votes for scrapping this transaction tax as well," said Simecka. He called on President Peter Pellegrini and Danko to act rather than "make excuses" that the tax cannot be cancelled. "We've also offered a huge number of options for cost-saving instead of the €700 million that the tax is supposed to bring in," he stressed. BRATISLAVA - The opposition SaS party wants to reduce the impact of the transaction tax on the health-care sector via an amendment to the Act on the Financial Transaction Tax, MP Tomas Szalay (SaS) announced at a press conference on Monday. The proposal, sponsored by SaS, states that all health-care providers should be exempt from the transaction tax without exception. Szalay pointed out that currently only state hospitals, as budgetary organisations, are exempt from the tax. "At the end of the day, it's the Slovak patient who will bear the brunt of the transaction tax in health care, either through the higher fees that they will have to pay, or through reduced access to health-care services, as providers may refuse to continue participating in such a system, or may cancel their contracts altogether," stated Szalay, calling for a complete exemption from the transaction tax for all health-care providers. BRATISLAVA - Juraj Kralik will become the new Director General of the Slovak National Gallery (SNG) starting Tuesday (April 15), TASR learnt from Petra Bacinska of the Culture Ministry's press department on Monday. Kralik's appointment was based on a selection process. “We believe that under his leadership, the national gallery will continue to fulfill its mission as an important institution of culture,” stated the ministry. Jaroslav Ninaj thus ends his role as the SNG acting director, with the Culture Ministry thanking him for leading the institution during the transitional period. BRATISLAVA - As of Monday noon, the elimination of existing outbreaks of foot-and-mouth disease, including the Dolny Stal farm, has been completed and no new outbreak has been detected thus far, Agriculture and Rural Development Minister Richard Takac (Smer-SD) announced at a press briefing in the company of representatives from the Interior Ministry, Defence Ministry and the country's security and rescue forces. A total of 1,842 unregistered illicit livestock holdings have been reported to veterinarians. BRATISLAVA - The EU Foreign Affairs Council in Luxembourg condemned on Monday the Russian attack on the Ukrainian city of Sumy, which claimed at least 34 lives and injured more than 100, Slovak Foreign and European Affairs Minister Juraj Blanar (Smer-SD) stated on the same day. Blanar described the strike as unacceptable and as proof that war does not choose its victims, emphasizing that such attack must be condemned. The minister stated that he supports the continued training of Ukrainian soldiers on Slovak territory, as well as Ukraine’s ambition to become a member of the European Union. Blanar noted that Slovakia will not obstruct other EU member states from providing military aid to Ukraine on a bilateral basis, but will support all activities aimed at alleviating civilian suffering, including the delivery of electricity and logistical infrastructure. lin