MORNING NEWS HIGHLIGHTS - Friday, 10 April 2026 - 9 a.m.

TASR brings a quick morning overview of the most important events seen in Slovakia on the previous day (Thursday, 9 April): BRATISLAVA - The special price of diesel that applies to foreign drivers will be decreased to €2.003 per litre as of midnight on Friday (10 March), according to an amended decree of the Finance Ministry that was published on the slov-lex.sk website on Thursday. Over the past week, the regulated price for vehicles registered abroad has been €2.063 per litre. The special price for diesel has been in effect in Slovakia since 23 March as part of measures introduced during the state of emergency concerning oil declared by the government. The cabinet on Wednesday (8 April) approved an amendment to the respective regulation, based on which it will be possible to export diesel from Slovakia again as of Friday (10 April). Other restrictions, such as a limit of 10 litres when filling diesel into portable containers and different fuel prices for domestic and foreign cars, remain in force. The new special diesel price applies exclusively to vehicles registered outside Slovak territory. It's been set based on the average diesel prices in the Czech Republic, Poland and Austria. Data on prices for each country are published by the European Commission (EC) every Thursday, and the calculation of the special price is based on these statistical data. There's no special price for foreign drivers when it comes to so-called premium diesel. BRATISLAVA - Health Minister Kamil Sasko (Voice-SD) opened the 'Healthy Hospitals - Strong Health Care' conference at the Borik Hotel in Bratislava on Thursday, with President Peter Pellegrini, House Chair Richard Rasi (Voice-SD) and Prime Minister Robert Fico (Smer-SD) also present, TASR reported on Thursday. Sasko praised the fact that the conference is being attended by representatives of the entire health-care sector, which is proof that health care draws the attention of the whole of society rather than being a marginal issue. The goal is to seek solutions that will systematically change the motivation of all stakeholders. "This is the only way to make our hospitals sustainable in the long term, so that they stop being synonymous with ever-growing losses and repeated debt bailouts," stated Sasko. He also mentioned an audit that highlighted the steps to be taken by the Health Ministry, promising to introduce measures with impacts that will be subsequently monitored by the ministry. President Pellegrini emphasised in his address that stakeholders and politicians must find common ground on fundamental issues, while also highlighting the importance of continuity between governments. "Due to our inability to act in unison on fundamental priorities that extend beyond a single electoral term, we witness discontinuity with every new government that comes up with new priorities, thereby cancelling the original ones and disrupting the entire process that should lead us toward a better future," stated Pellegrini, who welcomed Rasi's and Fico's presence at the event. BRATISLAVA - The opposition 'Slovakia', and Freedom and Solidarity (SaS) parties stated on Thursday that the family of Government Proxy for Roma Communities Alexander Dasko is alleged to have benefited from EU subsidies via a project for a civil association called Lavuta, which is represented by Dasko's wife, Olga. The opposition's criticism centres on a grant from the Slovakia Programme and the European Social Fund as part of a call titled 'The Unemployed and Inactive on the Path to the Labour Market'. In a press release, the 'Slovakia' party explained that the civil association - which Dasko founded and which he transferred to his wife, Olga Daskova, after taking up office as government proxy - received a non-refundable grant of €749,836 in November 2025 for a project called 'A Chance for Change for Inactive NEET'. "The stated goal is to involve 170 young people, though only 17 of them are expected to get a job. This translates to approximately €4,400 per participant and more than €44,000 per person employed," stated the 'Slovakia' party. "Furthermore, the contractual terms allow the project to be considered successful even with a significantly lower number of people actually employed. Thus, the risk is borne not by the beneficiary, but exclusively by the state," added the opposition party. At a press conference on Thursday, SaS joined 'Slovakia' in alleging misconduct regarding subsidies for the Lavuta association's project. "If this isn't a textbook example of corruption and cronyism, then what is it?" asked SaS MP Vladimir Ledecky at the briefing. Both opposition parties called on the government to dismiss the proxy and investigate the allegations that they have made. In response, Dasko emphasised that since taking up office as government proxy, he hasn't been a member of any organisation or civil association that has received public funds. He recommended that questions regarding the relevant grant should be directed directly to the civil association and the Labour Ministry. BRATISLAVA - The possibility of declaring a state of alert - which, if implemented, would grant the military greater powers and a legislative framework for its operations - may not be included in the Slovak Constitution. Coalition politicians, opposition representatives, President Peter Pellegrini, and Chief-of-General-Staff of the Slovak Armed Forces Daniel Zmeko agreed on Thursday during a roundtable discussion on the need for further analysis. They will conduct a joint exercise to determine what legislative changes the Slovak legal system requires. However, politicians agreed on the need to amend defence laws. The head of state, who convened the roundtable, announced that Zmeko will soon invite political representatives to the General Staff, where he'll organise exercises simulating various response scenarios to threats. Among the politicians will be members of the House defence and security committee, and the committee for supervising the activities of Military Intelligence. The parliamentary committees should subsequently draft the legislation. "They will evaluate, step by step, what the armed forces can and cannot do under current legislation, and what changes would be needed in the legislation to allow them to intervene effectively," stated the president. Following the meeting, Pellegrini also took note of the new Slovak defence strategy. Zmeko stated that neither the military nor he personally cares whether the constitution will include a provision for declaring a state of emergency or whether current legislation will be amended to allow the armed forces to carry out their duties effectively. "What's important is that we create the space and time for the armed forces to prepare and be deployed effectively. And I think we've done a great deal of work and made progress in this public debate," he noted. BRATISLAVA - State-run water-management construction company Vodohospodarska vystavba (VV) has scrapped the tender for procuring project documentation for the Malinec pumped storage power plant project, according to a document published on the Public Procurement Office's website. The documentation was intended to serve as the basis for a state expert assessment in accordance with the Public Works Act. The estimated value of the contract was €1.3 million, ex-VAT. The company cancelled the public procurement on 2 April. Three bidders submitted bids to the water-management company within the deadline. "Given that the bidder that submitted the lowest bid was excluded from the procurement process for failing to demonstrate compliance with the participation requirements, and that the other bids exceeded the estimated contract value, there were grounds worthy of special consideration meaning that the contracting authority shouldn't be required to continue with the procurement," stated VV. The company also explained that the cancellation of the public tender doesn't mean that work on the project has been halted. It is continuing in order to prepare a feasibility study, which is crucial for further decisions regarding the project's future. BRATISLAVA - Labour Minister Erik Tomas (Voice-SD) held a news conference on Thursday to present a draft amendment to the Labour Code, sponsored by the Labour Ministry in cooperation with KOVO Trade Union, which aims to increase the protection of trade union leaders against unlawful dismissals by employers. According to Tomas, the amendment is intended to protect honest union members from dishonest employers, but also honest employers from those who set up fictitious unions. "The basic principle of the amendment to the Labour Code is that the National Labour Inspectorate (NIP) will enter the process. Under the new rules, an employer who decides to dismiss a trade union leader will have the option of contacting NIP," said Tomas. If the employer doesn't contact the inspectorate, the termination of the labour contract will be invalid and the employment relationship will continue. If the employer does turn to the inspectorate with a request to dismiss a trade union leader, the case will be assessed by a tripartite commission composed of representatives of the employer, the trade union and the inspectorate. The commission will recommend to the NIP director whether or not to grant consent to the dismissal of the employee in question. The minister noted that unlawful dismissals of trade union leaders have increased in recent years. "It often happens that several companies, especially foreign, multinational companies operating in Slovakia, dismiss a union leader without the consent of the union organisation, which contradicts the law. Courts then subsequently rule in favour of the trade union leaders, finding that they've been dismissed unlawfully," said Tomas. These employers must compensate them for their lost salaries, but they are already working somewhere else, which isn't a good situation, he said. jrg