Monitor: Danko: We're Aware Some Bills Might Fail After Budget Approval

(TA3,'V politike', 18 October) The governing coalition is aware that some legislative proposals may fail to pass once Parliament has approved next year's state budget, Andrej Danko, leader of the coalition's Slovak National Party (SNS), stated on TA3's discussion programme 'V politike' (In Politics) on Sunday. Danko noted that there was agreement on some legislative proposals but not on others, adding that securing approval for the state budget had been the priority. He also said the coalition has agreed to put personnel issues on hold for the time being, including the appointment of the next governor of the Slovak Central Bank (NBS). Instead, it will focus on strategic proposals that it believed it could get through Parliament. "Things are always tight, even when you have 78 MPs. Some MP might make a mistake, but that doesn't matter; we'll simply vote again. Some bills pass, others do not," Danko said. He also addressed the possibility of abolishing the Ministry of Investments, Regional Development and Informatization, saying he had no objection to the move and underlining the need to cut state expenditure. Asked whether scrapping the ministry could threaten the coalition's stability, given that minister Samuel Migal and deputy minister Radomir Salitros would return to Parliament, Danko said the coalition was aware that "some bills will not pass once the budget has been approved". Opposition's Freedom and Solidarity (SaS) party leader and MP Branislav Groehling, Danko's opposite number, said he has long advocated streamlining the state administration. "There should be fewer ministries, fewer state employees and fewer institutions, because the state should be much leaner than it is now," he said, arguing that this would free up substantial financial resources. Groehling dismissed the coalition's statements about potentially abolishing the ministry as a mere pre-election tactic. However, he said that if the coalition submitted such a proposal, his party would seek to include other ministries as well, including the Sports Ministry, as well as the Deputy Prime Minister responsible for the Recovery Plan. "If we're going to do it, it should be prepared by 2028 so that all institutions have time to get ready for a genuinely lean state," he added. The programme also addressed the parliamentary motion of no confidence in Environment Minister Tomas Taraba. Danko denied coordinating his actions with opposition parties. He said he had been entitled to vote for Taraba's removal in Parliament after exhausting all other available mechanisms. Danko argued that the episode had helped secure parliamentary approval of the state budget and revealed the character of MPs Tomas Taraba and Peter Slysko, both independents now, who abstained from the vote. The SNS leader also discussed remuneration in ministries, saying he intended to propose a cap on bonuses of 50 percent of gross salary. Another topic was the SNS nomination of Filip Kuffa to head the Environment Ministry. Danko said he was unaware of any circumstances that should disqualify Kuffa from the nomination, arguing that he meets the relevant expertise and educational requirements. Danko confirmed that he had discussed the matter with President Peter Pellegrini. Commenting on the president's request for information from the intelligence services about Kuffa's activities, Danko said the president was entitled to seek such information. He also referred to Taraba's statements about Kuffa, noting that Kuffa has filed a criminal complaint against an unknown perpetrator. Danko said Kuffa was aware that several criminal complaints has been filed against him and that his reputation has been damaged. "The problem with the Kuffas arose when they refused to obey Taraba, stood up to Robert Fico (Smer-SD) and refused to undermine the government," Danko said. Groehling reiterated his opposition to Kuffa's nomination. "I do not think Kuffa has any business being in the position of environment minister," he said. He described the president's request for information about Kuffa from the intelligence services as absurd. If Taraba or the president had any relevant information, Groehling argued, they should refer it to law enforcement authorities, which should then take appropriate action. Groehling also touched on the presidential election scheduled for 2029, saying the opposition should unite behind a single candidate and begin discussions now. He revealed that he had spoken to someone earlier in the week and told the person that he "would be very glad if they became the nominee for the next female president". mf