Opposition: Social Policy Not Such a Success, People Bedevilled by Price Hikes

Bratislava, 25 June (TASR) - The governance policy results of the Labour, Social Affairs and Family Ministry are not as positive as presented by Prime Minister Robert Fico (Smer-SD) and Labour Minister Erik Tomas (Voice-SD) during Fico's inspection visit earlier on Wednesday, opposition MPs from Progressive Slovakia (PS) and the 'Slovakia' party declared on the same day. „People are mainly troubled by Fico’s price hikes, uncertainty, and social decline. Inflation in the country is among the highest in the entire EU, and that is the result of Fico’s social policy,” said MP Simona Petrik (PS). She also pointed to failures by the Labour Minister, particularly in regard to caregivers, who had been losing their money for months — an issue that was only redressed after the opposition brought it to attention. In addition, Petrik criticized the government’s approach toward socially disadvantaged groups. „More than 900,000 people are currently at the risk of poverty, including single parents, who have received no help from the government so far. Instead of making them a priority, the government is focusing on enshrining the concept of two genders in the Constitution. Rather than helping the most vulnerable, the Labour Minister wants to take material need benefits away from the poorest,” she noted. Igor Matovic, leader of the 'Slovakia' party, criticized Fico and Tomas for deceiving the public with their pre-election promises - only to take money away from families after the election. One example, he said, is the cancellation of the 'parental pension' scheme - which deprived seniors of €400 million annually - and the reduction of the €200 monthly child allowance, which has cost families €500 million annually. „Since the election, Fico and Tomas have done nothing but take from the people — increasing fees, taxes, and levies — and so doing exactly the opposite of what they promised. They should be ashamed for robbing families of €200 per child, robbing pensioners of their parental pensions, and tricking all voters with false promises not to take anything from them,” Matovic concluded. Minister Tomas countered that it was in fact Matovic’s government that abolished the 13th pension and froze minimum pensions - thus costing seniors €1.6 billion between 2020 and 2023. In contrast, the current government has, Tomas said, approved a more generous 13th pension and modified the parental pension to be paid from personal income tax revenues. Opposition MP Michal Sipos from the 'Slovakia' party also criticized the government’s plans regarding the second pension pillar, where citizens have saved over €17 billion. He called on Fico not to touch this money and to leave people’s savings alone. mf