MPs Fail to Open Session on Taraba's Ouster, Motion Shifted to September Session

Bratislava, 2 June (TASR) - Parliament failed to open a special session with a no-confidence motion in Environment Minister Tomas Taraba (a Slovak National Party/SNS nominee) as the sole point on the agenda also on Tuesday, as only 57 lawmakers presented themselves at the second attempt, which wasn't enough for the House to be quorate. The motion to dismiss the environment minister will be included in the agenda of the next regular House session, due to begin on 15 September. Taraba's ouster was initiated by the opposition Progressive Slovakia (PS) party, which criticised him for his failures in addressing waste management and critical infrastructure issues, as well as in preparing the zoning plans for national parks. PS argues that the failures in the preparation of the zoning plan could lead to the loss of nearly half a billion euros from the Recovery Plan. The opposition also lambasted him for "forcing" experts out of the ministry, as well as for not taking the crisis situation concerning drought seriously. According to the opposition, Taraba has also failed to handle the situation with bears. ko