Monitor: Tomas: Gov't Will Not Meet on 17 November, Unless Security Risks Arise

(STVR, 'Sobotne dialogy', 15 November) Speaking on STVR's politics programme 'Sobotne dialogy' (Saturday Dialogues), Labour, Social Affairs and the Family Minister Erik Tomas (Voice-SD) said the government and the security council will not hold a session on 17 November unless security risks arise. "The government is due to meet on 19 November. On 17 November, the government will not hold its session and neither will the security council, unless, of course, some security risks arise," he said, adding that 17 November remains a national holiday, but is no longer a day of rest. According to him, people are free to gather in demonstrations on that day, as they have the right to express their opinion freely. His opponent on the show, opposition Christian Democrats (KDH) MP Jozef Hajko criticised the abolishment of the public holiday which marks the fall of the totalitarian regime, calling it "a serious intervention". "We will insist on reopening the debate regarding this day so that it could be given the corresponding weight again," said Hajko. He also commented on the opposition Freedom and Solidarity (SaS) party's effort to call a general strike on 17 November, which he considers unsuitable. Tomas thinks that political parties shouldn't be organising a general strike. Both representatives touched on the alleged communication of Miroslav Lajcak, former Slovak foreign minister and current adviser to the prime minister, with late US financier Jeffrey Epstein. As the information is fresh, Tomas and Hajko agreed it's too early to draw any conclusions. They also talked about the effects of the consolidation of public finances and discussed the report of the Council for Budget Responsibility concerning its impact on the income of families in Slovakia. Tomas believes the council is "overstepping its mandate and should, first of all, evaluate the impact of the consolidation on public finances, be it positive or negative". Hajko described the attacks on the Council for Budget Responsibility as "shocking" and pointed out that it is one of the few institutions in Slovakia that is capable of calculating the effects of the consolidation package. jrg