Plenković Says HDZ Won't Lose Voters to Škoro
ZAGREB, May 5, 2020 - Prime Minister and HDZ party leader Andrej Plenković said on Monday that his party was not afraid that it would lose voters to right-wing parties that have been gathering around Homeland Movement leader Miroslav Škoro.
Addressing reporters ahead of a session of the HDZ leadership, Plenković said that regardless of when the parliamentary elections would be held, the HDZ would win them.
Plenković would not comment on a session of the HDZ branch in Zagreb, which was expected to meet on Monday evening to discuss cooperation with Zagreb Mayor Milan Bandić.
Plenković recalled that an agreement had been reached by the coalition partners in the Zagreb City Assembly to hold the next assembly session via video link.
Plenković does not believe that the latest developments signal a crisis in relations between the coalition partners in Zagreb and believes that an agreement should be reached.
HDZ City Assembly member Ivan Ćelić said after today's session of the party branch in Zagreb that City Assembly chair Drago Prgomet of the HDZ, who had announced that the session would focus on the coalition with Bandić's party, excused himself so the matter was not discussed.
The bone of contention between the HDZ and Bandić is the decision to hold the City Assembly session online, which Mayor Bandić has refused.
Prgomet said Bandić's move was an act of belittling the HDZ and the City Assembly, which was why he announced that the HDZ's cooperation with Bandić's party in Zagreb would be reconsidered.
Ćelić said that it was still not known in what format the City Assembly session would be held but that the HDZ wanted it to be held online to help prevent the spreading of the coronavirus.
Reporters asked HDZ political secretary Ante Sanader if he expected Plenković to put forward a concrete date for parliamentary elections at the party leadership's meeting today, to which Sanader said that they had not discussed the matter and that it was not on the agenda of the meeting.
Asked by reporters if the ruling majority in the national parliament had enough hands to dissolve the parliament, Sanader said that they had not discussed the matter with their coalition partners but that he was confident they would have enough hands when the time comes and that the Opposition, too, would vote in favour of dissolving the parliament.
More HDz news can be found in the Politics section.
Petar Graso Performs in Empty Split Peristyle for Sv. Duje 2020
May 5, 2020 - The City of Split and the Split Tourist Board, in cooperation with Dalmatia Concert and sponsored by OTP Bank Split, are bringing Split citizens a special treat for Sv. Duje on Thursday. Petar Graso performing in an empty Peristyle.
"Unfortunately, traditional festivities in Split will be absent this year. We will celebrate Sv. Duje without the buzz, the crowds, the procession and the mass on the waterfront, the raffle and the Sudamja Fair; without a great concert and fireworks, without everything we have done with all our fellow citizens for years. This year will be different than ever, but I still believe that the feast of our patron saint will be celebrated in our hearts and with our families. To all the citizens of Split, but also all the viewers of Croatian Radio and Television, on the day of Sv. Duje, we bring you a Peter Graso concert from Peristyle. Although we are forced to be physically separated, let us be together on Thursday evening in front of small screens in this unusual, different and I believe beautiful celebration," says Split Mayor Andro Krstulovic Opara.
Petar Graso also shared his impressions:
"I am a child of Split, Split is my home, despite the fact that I have been in it for the last twenty years. If it had not been for these specific circumstances, I, unfortunately, would have been out of Split on this Sv. Duje. But as it usually is, different circumstances dictate a different life plan, and so one of the strangest, and in some ways, the most beautiful concert of my career happened, a concert without a single person in the audience."
Graso also says that if someone had told him last year that he would play in front of an empty Peristyle and be most honored, he would have thought it impossible, but given the events of the past months, he is delighted and honored on this occasion: "I am happy to have the privilege of having a concert in one of the most beautiful squares in the world in my city, and giving it to both my Split and all the people who will be at home on Thursday evening in front of small screens. This is a concert of optimism, a concert of light and celebration. We were looking forward to it; somehow we seem to see the light at the end of the tunnel we've all been in for the past two months," Graso concludes, wishing this would be the last concert before an empty Peristyle.
The concert will be broadcast on Split's City Day on Thursday, May 7, on the second program of Croatian Radio and Television.
To read more about lifestyle in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.
Istria County Tourism Committee: Hotels and Camps to Open May 11
May 5, 2020 - At the 2nd session of the Istria County Tourism Committee, held Monday through a full conference call, members discussed the epidemiological situation in Istria and future activities after the borders open, as well as expectations for the 2020 tourist year.
HRTurizam reports that at the very beginning, the Acting Prefect and the President of the Committee, Fabrizio Radin, emphasized that they had asked the National Civil Protection Headquarters when the borders would open, that is, the date and conditions of the eventual border opening of the Republic of Croatia to other European countries.
"We have received a reply that the topic of the eventual opening of internal borders within the EU will be on the table of tomorrow's summit, which will be held in Brussels. At that meeting, guidelines and indicative dates for the opening of borders should be defined," said the prefect of Radin.
Following the protection measures for hotels and camps, those for nautical, private accommodation and travel agencies are being developed.
The session was also attended by the Director of the Institute of Public Health of Istria County, Dr. Aleksandar Stojanovic, who commented on the epidemiological situation in Istria, as well as the proposals for protection measures for camps and hotels.
"Since the beginning of the pandemic, we have had 87 COVID-19 positive people, and as you can hear, a few days ago, the last patient in Istria County was cured, or he was discharged from the Pula General Hospital. As of Thursday, we have no more positive patients in Istria County. At the moment, we have about 1300 people in self-isolation, 200 of whom are contacts of positive people, while others have received an epidemiological measure of self-isolation because they crossed the border," said Dr. Stojanovic.
Regarding the proposals for protection measures and operational procedures drawn up by the Croatian Camping Union and the Croatian Tourism Entrepreneurs Association, Dr Stojanovic said that they are professionally based and mostly cover potential risks. The measures will be presented after an agreement with the National Headquarters and the Ministry of Tourism.
It was agreed at the session that a proposal for measures for nautical tourism, private accommodation and travel agencies would be drafted by next week, in cooperation with the above sectors and ZZJZIŽ.
Regarding the expectations of the tourist year, it was emphasized that everything depends on the date the borders open for both Croatia and the main markets, i.e., Slovenia, Austria, Germany Hungary, Slovakia and the Czech Republic. Furthermore, from Monday, May 11, hotels and campsites would operate, with all their facilities, which will open gradually, depending on the opening of state borders, or market demand.
To read more about travel in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.
Beware the Croatian Inspector: 10. The Great Dutch/Hungarian Sponge Deception
May 5, 2020 - Beware the Croatian inspector - a new series courtesy of Glas Poduzetnika (Voice of Entrepreneurs), highlighting a Croatian business reality that helps kill growth, profit, and entrepreneurship. The Great Dutch/Hungarian Sponge Deception
I have seen them operating all over the country over the last 18 years, the most feared visitors to Croatia's cafes, restaurants, and other businesses - the Croatian inspector.
As with many corrupt countries, the role of the inspector should be to make sure that the rules are being adhered to in the particular area they specialize in - sanitary, fiscal, etc - but in reality, the prime motivation is to find ways to fill the State coffers and their own. Allegedly.
I heard SO many stories of inspections where perfectly run businesses end up paying thousands in fines, some of it justified, much of it grossly unfair. And there is an old truism here:
If the Croatian inspector comes to visit, he will find something, even if there is nothing there.
It is a subject that I have wanted to cover for years, but I never had quite the right material. Until now.
Huge thanks to those very proactive chaps at Glas Poduzetnika, who are really becoming a force for change to be reckoned with. A really great initiative. In one of their latest moves, they have been collecting some of their members' experiences with the Croatian inspector, to highlight the issue and the realities of doing business in Beautiful Croatia.
Story #10: The Great Dutch/Hungarian Sponge Deception
I've collected a bunch of these stories over 30 years of entrepreneurship. I am currently in court, already in my third hearing, for an unproven and ridiculous sin worth less than 200 kn. I was also in the process for a declaration that, according to the inspector, did not cover the country of origin Netherlands because the goods came from Hungary (it was an international company that has factories in several countries). The declaration moved and on it stated one country, while below was shown another. So I was deceiving consumers who find it very important, whether the dish sponge is from a particular EU country. So I was in court with a threat to have the vehicle seized because the driver had loaded a meter of wood in the official car, etc. I was also punished by customs for 400 kn of non-existent debt (even though we pay hundreds of thousands of customs VAT and customs duties per month), I also paid taxes which in the tax office "popped up on the screen." We definitely didn't owe those, but we needed confirmation that we didn't have a tax debt, etc.
Beware the Croatian Inspector is a new daily series (yes, there really is that much material) which you can follow here.
If you have a Croatian inspector story you would like to share with the Glas Poduzetnika team (in English or Croatian), you can do so via This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Subject TCN inspector.
You can follow the 55,000+ others on the Glas Poduzetnika Facebook page.
Croatian Chamber of Commerce Seeking to Relax Measures for Driving Schools
Croatia has gradually begun to loosen up its formerly stringent anti-epidemic measures, and the Croatian Chamber of Commerce (HGK) is seeking more freedoms for driving schools and international drivers.
As Novac writes on the 4th of May, 2020, the Croatian Chamber of Commerce has asked the National Civil Protection Headquarters to relax some of the measures applicable to drivers in international road freight transport, as well as others which will provide better grounding for the start of driving school operations on May the 11th, 2020.
At the request of the members of the Road Freight Association, the Croatian Chamber of Commerce has proposed that quarantine and home/self-isolation measures for international drivers be carried out under the same conditions as drivers in domestic transport.
''According to the current regulations, a driver must not leave their house or their assigned accommodation where they're self-isolating, except in the case of a call from their employer for transport. On their return from a foreign country, they then begin a new cycle of self-isolation, and changing the driving and staying-at-home cycles in this regime can take up to a month, in some cases it takes even longer.
As the drivers operating under this regime don't have symptoms of illness, the Croatian Chamber of Commerce believes that they should be allowed to go to the store and pharmacy as needed and have a limited stay outside of their homes just like other people do,'' said the Croatian Chamber of Commerce's Vice President for Construction, Transport and Communications, Mirjana Cagalj.
The Association of Driving Schools of the Croatian Chamber of Commerce has also proposed that the measures for them be relaxed in order to enable the continued running of driving lessons from May the 11th onwards, with the application of horizontal and specific protection measures. They believe that with the education of staff and strict adherence to health regulations, both theory and practical teaching can be held smoothly, and they have been given specific suggestions on how to implement it by the National Cvil Protection Headquarters.
Make sure to follow our dedicated section for more on coronavirus in Croatia.
Pensioners' MP Criticised for Voting Against Increasing Means-Test Threshold
ZAGREB, May 4, 2020 - The association of pensioners MUH and the trade union of pensioners SUH on Monday welcomed the increase of the means-test threshold for free supplementary health insurance in favour the poorest pensioners, while criticising the MP of the Pensioners' Party (HSU), Silvano Hrelja, for voting against this proposal.
"It is surprising that the only elected representative of pensioners in the Croatian parliament voted against this indisputable move in favour of the poorest pensioners, and just because the proposal of his party to increase the means-test threshold did not pass a few months ago," the two organisations said in a joint statement.
Hrelja, a long-serving MP for pensioners "who has been representing the pensioners since he was 45", questioned the right of pensioner organisations to participate in the launch of initiatives and proposals to change the laws claiming that only he as a member of Parliament could represent the pensioners, MUH and SUH said.
They said that the amended Voluntary Health Insurance Act would benefit thousands of pensioners with low pensions who had lost the right to free supplementary health insurance because of pension adjustments.
"The representatives of pensioners demanded that the new means-test threshold be determined at the level of the Croatian poverty line, but since it was not possible to ensure the necessary funding, they agreed to a compromise solution, provided that the means test was aligned with pension growth every year. As a result, the new means-test threshold increased by HRK 60 to HRK 2,000 for single pensioners and by HRK 47 to HRK 1,563 per family member," the statement said.
More economic news can be found in the Business section.
MET Books Portion of Krk LNG Terminal Capacity for Three-Year Period
ZAGREB, May 4, 2020 - The MET Croatia Energy Trade company has submitted a binding offer to the LNG Hrvatska company to book capacities in the LNG terminal on the northern Adriatic island of Krk for a three-year period, amounting to 1.3 billion cubic meters overall, MET Croatia announced on Monday.
"Significant changes on the international energy markets are spearheaded by the rapid growth of global LNG trade, a development that MET Group welcomes. The Croatian LNG project will help Central and Eastern Europe to become an integral part of this global market. Furthermore, Croatian LNG imports will help MET Group link most of its downstream markets both from pipeline gas and from an LNG perspective as well," the company said in a press release.
Mario Matković, CEO of MET Croatia Energy Trade, said that that company was actively monitoring the global growth of demand for liquefied natural gas and increasing the volume of LNG delivered day by day.
"To succeed on the LNG market, apart from the specific knowledge with a global LNG desk, it is necessary to have a local presence, i.e. a market access for gas placement. We are the only player in the region that has both. Therefore, we have no doubt that booking the capacity in the LNG terminal in Krk will highly contribute to our long-term business strategy," Matković said.
MET Croatia, a member of MET Group, a European energy company headquartered in Zug, Switzerland, has been present in Croatia since 2013. The group employs 1,700 people in 15 countries, operates in 26 gas markets and is active in 22 international trading hubs. MET Group has been operating for 13 years and is the leading independent integrated energy company in the CEE region and other European markets including Spain and Italy, the statement said.
According to information available on the website of the LNG Hrvatska company, construction work on the floating LNG terminal is proceeding according to plan, and the terminal is due to start operating in early 2021. The terminal's technical capacity is 2.6 billion cubic metres annually.
The value of the investment project is estimated at €233.6 million. The European Commission has granted €101.4 million given that the project is listed among the Commission's projects of common interest.
More news about the LNG terminal can be found in the Business section.
Relaxing Restrictions Leads to Increased Turnover in Retail and Hospitality
ZAGREB, May 4, 2020 - The first wave of relaxing epidemiological restrictions since April 27 has led to an increased turnover in the retail and hospitality sectors compared to the week before, but annual figures are significantly lower, according to data from the Tax Administration.
Comparing the week from April 27 to May 3 with the week from April 20 to 26, the number of fiscal receipts in all activities increased by 3% while their overall amount increased by 6%.
A total of 22.1 million receipts were issued in all activities from April 27 to May 3, with a total value of HRK 2.3 billion.
The number of receipts issued in retail increased by 4% and their value rose by 8%.
Activities of providing accommodation and serving food increased by 6% on the week with regard to the number of receipts issued, the Tax Administration said.
The first wave of relaxing restrictions to contain the spread of the coronavirus epidemic took effect at the start of last week, allowing the retail sector, except for stores in shopping centres, to reopen.
As of Monday May 4, other activities such as hairdressers, barbers, pedicurists and the like were also allowed to reopen their businesses.
In the period from April 27 to May 3 there was a decrease of 49% in the number of receipts issued year on year and a decrease of 33% in value.
Since the outbreak of the coronavirus crisis in Croatia, from February 24 to May 3 the number of fiscal receipts issued decreased by 38%, with a 24% drop in value y-o-y.
This year 265.5 million receipts were issued in that period with a value of HRK 24.9 billion, whereas last year there were 425.5 million receipts issued with a value of HRK 32.6 billion.
More economic news can be found in the Business section.
TCN Talks: An Adriatic Walk from Jelsa on Hvar to Discover Vrboska (VIDEO)
May 4, 2020 - Just because we can't physically travel right now, that does not mean we cannot enjoy destinations remotely. TCN Talks, our new vlog takes in the Adriatic on a walk from Jelsa to discover Vrboska on Hvar.
When I first moved to Croatia back in 2002, I had a very strict routine. I would get up at 06:00 in my home in the old town of Jelsa and then walk all the way to Vrboska, about 40 minutes away. It was - still is - a delightful little walk along the Adriatic, with its pine forests and gorgeous hidden coves. And first thing in the morning, when there is nobody around, it is magical. And the prize at the end of the walk - to discover Vrboska!
I would have a morning coffee in a cafe in 'Little Venice' then walk back home to Jelsa, enjoying that peace, tranquility and view in reverse, and then be fully ready for work at 08:00, fully energised.
I kinda miss those days...
I found myself walking along the route again last week, then decided to film a little. People have been enjoying (or at least they claim to) the short videos of Hvar under lockdown that I have been posting on my Facebook page, and do I decided to capture some of the current magic.
Then, when I reached Vrboska for the first time in a year, I fell in love again once more, and I decided to film parts of this lovely slice of heaven, as well as add some of the knowledge I have acquired about Vrboska over the years and then turn it into the latest installment in our new experimental vlog (I will find my 'voice' soon) - TCN Talks.
I am VERY open to feedback and suggestions (and yes, I called the church a cathedral by mistake), so please leave any comments under the video.
To discover Vrboska in more detail, here are 25 things to know about Little Venice.
New Changes to Zagreb Public Transport: ZET Tram's New Timetable
The coronavirus pandemic saw numerous stringent measures introduced in Croatia, and now comes the second phase of loosening them gradually. While buses are in operation, only a select few trams in Zagreb have been. ZET made the decision to slow the return to normal for the trams owing not only to the need to be careful in the handling of coronavirus, but because of the damage caused by the Zagreb earthquake.
As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 4th of May, 2020, in the second phase of the gradual re-normalisation of ZET's tram transportation, tram line 12 will be put back into service as of today, Monday, May the 4th, and line 5 will return to its usual route, ZET announced on Sunday.
Line 12 will operate on the modified route: Ljubljanica - Ulica Grada Vukovara - Držićeva - Šubićeva - Kvaternikov Square - Maksimirska - Dubrava. At the same time, tram line 5 will operate along its usual route from Monday, Prečko - Savska cesta - Ulica Grada Vukovara - Držićeva - Šubićeva - Kvaternikov Square - Maksimirska - Dubrava.
The statement recalls that as of the end of last month, more precisely April the 27th, tram line 3 has been running along the Ljubljanica - Ulica Grada Vukovara - Savišće route, while line 14 has been running from Zapruđe via the Remetinec roundabout to Ljubljanica.
ZET tram lines will continue to operate according to a customised schedule and more detailed information on the routes, lines, tram numbers and the current schedule, as well as any changes when they come in will be available on ZET's official website.
"ZET's expert services, in cooperation with other emergency services, are on the ground every day and are working intensively to ensure that tram traffic and other lines continue to be gradually established," a statement from ZET said.
Make sure to follow our travel page for more. If it's just the Croatian capital you're interested in, give Total Zagreb a follow.
