MORNING NEWS HIGHLIGHTS - Wednesday, 17 September 2025 - 9 a.m.

TASR brings a quick morning overview of the most important events seen in Slovakia on the previous day (Tuesday, 16 September): BRATISLAVA – The parliamentary conflicts of interest committee at its session on Tuesday levied a fine on Defence Minister Robert Kalinak (Smer-SD) equalling three times his monthly salary for his failure to declare ownership of his wife's villa in Croatia in his property declaration, Kalinak's lawyer David Lindtner has confirmed for TASR following the committee session. At the same time, the committee didn't impose a fine on opposition MP Veronika Remisova ('Slovakia' party, For the People and the Christian Union/KU) who faced proceedings before the committee for disclosing non-public information about Kalinak in this connection. The committee agreed that the minister violated a constitutional law by failing to include ownership of his wife's villa in Croatia in property declarations. The minister didn't come to hear the committee's decision in person. BRATISLAVA – During their session on Tuesday, MPs discussed a proposal for a fact-tracked legislative procedure in connection with the adoption of consolidation measures. The debate on this proposal started on Friday (12 September). The legislators will resume the session again on Wednesday (17 September) at 9 a.m. Finance Minister Ladislav Kamenicky (Smer-SD) was also present in the House during the day. In the debate, opposition MPs expressed their disagreement with the fast-tracked legislative proceedings in connection with the adoption of consolidation measures for next year, stating that such a proposal is unjustified. They also criticised the lack of austerity on the part of the state in the context of consolidation. Consolidation, they said, will again affect mainly ordinary and working people. The finance minister stated that he inherited poor public finances from previous governments, in which several representatives of the current opposition served. NITRA - The increased occurrence and spread of hepatitis A in Nitra region has prompted a coordination meeting of experts to address the situation, said Health Minister Kamil Sasko (Voice-SD) on Tuesday, adding that his ministry is ready take steps necessary to stop the spread of the disease in Slovakia if the need arises. According to Sasko, the ministry is monitoring the situation on a daily basis in cooperation with experts. Higher occurrence levels are being reported in Nitra region in the districts of Komarno, Levice and Nove Zamky. Katarina Tinakova from the Regional Public Health Authority in Nitra said that regional hygienists are adopting district-level measures immediately after cases are reported, while monitoring the situation on a daily basis and checking compliance with the imposed measures. BRUSSELS/BRATISLAVA - The Party of European Socialists (PES) will permanently expel the Smer-SD political party led by Slovak Premier Robert Fico from its structures at the party congress due to take place in Amsterdam in October, TASR has reported based on information published by Euractiv.com website, citing three sources. The socialists' presidium decided to suspend Smer-SD's full membership and Voice-SD's associate membership in October 2023 for deviating from PES's values and forming a governing coalition with the Slovak National Party (SNS). According to one of the sources, Voice's membership will remain only suspended. The decision to expel Smer-SD definitively should be ratified in October, which will leave Robert Fico even more isolated on the European arena, wrote Euractiv. BRATISLAVA – The Education, Research, Development and Youth Ministry has filed a complaint with the Prosecutor-General's Office (PG) over systematic and repeated violations of laws to the detriment of the quality of education of students by six schools set up by two different founders. The State School Inspectorate has proposed removing them from the network of schools and school facilities in Slovakia. They are the Biela voda Private Combined School in Kezmarok (Presov region) and five private primary schools founded by the Creative Centre. This was announced at a press conference on Tuesday by Education Minister Tomas Drucker (Voice-SD), who also stated that the reasons for the move are serious. "In Slovakia, there is and will be no place for schools and their founders who cheat, who in a certain way also profit from public finances, but above all, who are unable or unwilling to provide education for our students, or who fraudulently fail to do so," said the minister. He considers the most serious problem at the Biela voda Private Joint School in Kezmarok to be an absolutely inadequate level of teaching expertise. According to him, in subjects such as computer science, mathematics and civics the level of expertise was at zero percent, while the law requires a minimum of 70 percent. BRATISLAVA – Gatherings organised by the opposition Progressive Slovakia (PS) party against consolidation are taking place in Bratislava, Kosice, Banska Bystrica, Zilina and 12 other cities and towns in Slovakia on Tuesday evening. The protest is also being attended by opposition chairs of Freedom and Solidarity (SaS), Christian Democrats (KDH) and the extra-parliamentary Democrats. According to PS, the consolidation will affect working people. "There is strength in unity. We have to work together like this, mobilise people and show [Premier Robert] Fico's [Smer-SD] government that it can't do everything. It can't impoverish people with impunity, sell them to the mafia or drag them off somewhere to Russia," said PS leader Michal Simecka, adding that he considers the consolidation to be an attack on employees, sole traders and entrepreneurs. The protests are also being held in Trnava, Nitra, Trencin, Presov, Bardejov, Kezmarok (both Presov region), Liptovsky Mikulas, Ruzomberok (Zilina region), Lucenec (Banska Bystrica region), Povazska Bystrica (Trencin region), Senica (Trnava region) and Spisska Nova Ves (Kosice region). ko