One of the key tasks of the new government is to create a competitive business environment, which will not be possible without foreign investments, Economic Development and Technology Minister Radovan Žerjav has said in an interview for STA. He hopes politicians will show unity in key moments.
The unpopular measures that will need to be introduced are already sparking protest among trade unions, but Žerjav sees any indirect threats from the unions as premature, given that the government had not put forward any proposals yet. "I'm convinced that we must first set up a good and wholesome dialogue. The government is ready for it, but both sides must be willing," he said, adding that once this is achieved arguments will prevail. According to the minister, the government showed it was serious about savings when it decided last Thursday to give no fresh money to bail out the organisers of the 2013 Winter Universiade in Maribor. Turning to his expectations of the opposition, Žerjav said he would like it to be constructive, especially when it comes to key measures envisaging painful cuts. "I wish we could show unity here and give the people and the international community a clear signal that this needs to be done and that we all agree on it." Slovenia will also respond to global trends such as the shifting of power from the West to East. "One would say we are keeping on top of these trends, but not fast enough. Economic diplomacy must do more in this respect." He said that he and Foreign Minister Karl Erjavec had agreed to keep economic diplomacy under the wing of the Foreign Ministry even though the coalition agreement envisaged its transfer to the Economic Development and Technology Ministry. However, he pointed out that a special operative body would be formed through which he would give economic attaches detailed instructions about their work and monitor their achievements. "Slovenia's exports are indeed rising, but the trend of growth is significantly lower than in some other European countries. We still have some reserves here." But the European market, where Slovenia mostly exports to, is struggling with serious problems and a new recession is on the horizon. Elaborating on how the cabinet plans to help Slovenian companies cope with this, Žerjav highlighted measures from the coalition agreement aimed at boosting competitiveness - changes to the tax system, introduction of a cap on social contributions and tax breaks for businesses.
The government will also aim to cut red tape for businesses and change insolvency legislation. Asked how the government will ease the credit crunch, the minister said that without a capital injection into the country's biggest bank, NLB, the problem of the banking sector would not be resolved. However, a state-sponsored capital increase could not be justified, which is why a strategic partner will need to be found abroad, according to Žerjav. "Whether this will be KBC or somebody else is irrelevant. What matters is that we keep the 25% plus a share." In general, the new government will look for balance between saving money and promoting growth by keeping only efficient instruments, for example among the development centres, and by relying on EU funds and foreign investments. "We must admit that - with a few bright exceptions - there is no domestic capital in Slovenia at the moment to finance major projects. There is no other alternative but to lean on European funds and foreign capital." Žerjav asserted that there was interest for investing into Slovenia, but would not speak of concrete countries. He only said the possible investors were "from very far away, from the Far East, but also from Europe". Touching on the controversial Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA), the minister said that the government would freeze its ratification as soon as possible. "This agreement is obviously not a matter of understanding, but a major misunderstanding." In his opinion, the agreement does not strike a right balance between protecting copyright holders on the one hand and human rights on the other, which is "obviously being ascertained not only in Slovenia, but also in many other European countries which are taking similar steps".
Source: The SloveniaTimes
