Monitor: Prime Minister Admits that MPs Won't Override Veto on Gambling Act

(STVR, 'Sobotne dialogy', 8 November) MPs for Smer-SD are likely to support overturning President Peter Pellegrini's veto on the amendment to the Gambling Act, Premier Robert Fico (Smer-SD) stated on STVR's politics programme 'Sobotne dialogy' (Saturday Dialogues), however, he believes that it will be difficult to override the veto. If Parliament doesn't override it, he doesn't believe it will cause turbulence in the coalition, as it is not a "vital law". "I don't see any fundamental problem with this law, because its aim is partly to bring gambling under state control and, above all, to increase the amount of money going into the state budget," said Fico about the vetoed amendment to the Gambling Act. "As far as Smer is concerned, if we voted for the law in Parliament, I assume that the parliamentary caucus will repeat this vote," he added. If the House doesn't approve the law again, nothing will happen, according to him. "It is possible that we won't have 76 votes to break the veto," he said, adding that this won't be a factual problem, but a political one, given the tension between Tourism and Sport Minister Rudolf Huliak (Independent) and the coalition Slovak National Party (SNS). According to Fico, the vote of confidence in the government due to the Debt Brake Act will be a formality and the government will receive confidence. However, the date of the vote hasn't yet been set. The prime minister also announced a visit by NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, who will arrive in Slovakia on 18 November. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz is expected to visit Slovakia at the turn of the years, and a visit by Chinese President Xi Jinping is also being prepared. am