ZAGREB, July 13, 2020 - Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandrokovic on Monday denied media allegations that the Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) had received donations from companies that were granted government subsidies during the coronavirus epidemic.

"That information is not true. The donations concerned were paid no later than March 12 before any lockdown measures were introduced or any government subsidies were issued to bail out the economy. We did not receive any donations after March 12, or we received some but that money of about HRK 70,000 was paid back to the state budget," Jandrokovic said ahead of a meeting of the HDZ presidency.

He added that "those donations were paid before the COVID situation even emerged," adding that at that time no one could have to know what was to happen later.

HDZ's presidency and national council on Monday appointed Krunoslav Katicic as the party's new secretary-general, replacing Jandrokovic who will be reappointed parliament speaker based on an earlier agreement in the party.

Jandrokovic said: "Now, I will dedicate myself 100 percent to the position of parliament speaker," expressing satisfaction with the opportunity to be in that position for a second term.

"It was demanding and challenging to conduct both the duties of parliament speaker and secretary-general of HDZ. I look proudly at the past four years and wish my successor good luck," said Jandrokovic.

New parliament to be inaugurated on 22 July

He announced that the new parliament should be convened on July 22 if there are no complaints related to the July 5 parliamentary election in the town of Rasa which was repeated on Sunday. Parliament is expected to sit in Parliament House taking account of epidemiological measures.

ZAGREB, July 13, 2020 - In the first half of this year, the ruling Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) party received HRK 560,000 in donations for its regular political activities, a report published on Monday shows.

The HDZ received more than about 30 other political parties combined. The bulk of donations, slightly over HRK 500,000, were made in money and HRK 57,000 in products or services. Not one donation exceeded HRK 30,000.

About 30 political parties have so far submitted their reports on donations and they are available on the Electoral Commission's website.

The report by the Croatian Peasant Party (HSS), published on Monday, shows that the party received a modest HRK 13,750 from donors.

Reports published earlier show that the Croatian Conservative Party (HKS) of MEP Ruza Tomasic overtook the Croatian People's Party (HNS), to which donors had been very inclined in the past years. The HKS received HRK 164,000 in donations and the HNS 143,000.

Many political parties, including those in parliament, reported no donations, including the Independent Democratic Serb Party, the Croatian Pensioners Party, the Istrian Democratic Party and Let's Change Croatia. Independent MPs Vladimir Bilek, who represents the Czech and Slovak minorities, and Veljko Kajtazi (Roma minority) also reported receiving no donations.

The Social Democratic Party, Bridge, and the Homeland Movement are yet to submit their reports. The deadline is July 15.

Any party that fails to do so by the given deadline faces a fine of between HRK 10,000 and 100,000, while MPs and councillors face a fine of between HRK 2,000 and 20,000.

(€1 = HRK 7.53)

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 9th of July, 2020, what is certain for now under the new Croatian Government is that Zdravko Maric will remain at the head of state finances, Vili Beros will continue to lead the health care system, as will Davor Bozinovic with the police, and Oleg Butkovic should remain at the head of the Maritime Affairs, Transport and Infrastructure ministry.

The maths at the minute reads as follows: Closer to 16 than to 12, but most likely 15.

Although Plenkovic doesn't want to come out with the precise number of ministries that will exist under the new Croatian Government yet, Vecernji list has learned that it could eventually have exactly 15 ministers. They are still talking and agreeing on things.

''The Prime Minister will decide who will stay, and who will go, he's the selector,'' Butkovic said using his football-style vocabulary on the eve of the meeting of the cabinet of the Government. Asked if his department was one of those intended for ''merging'', he was surprised.

''With what? When it's already too big, we're already connected,'' said the minister who "covers" road construction, telecommunications, maritime affairs and transport. What has not yet been merged, and will most likely be, is state property and energy, which should be annexed to the Ministry of Economy, all under the leadership of Tomislav Coric.

''Different options for mergers and acquisitions have been mentioned, we've announced a reduction in the number of ministries and we'll implement that, and what is important in all these reductions is that the functionality is equal or greater,'' said yesterday Josip Aladrovic, whose Labour Ministry should be annexed under social policy.

As Vecernji list finds out, Aladrovic is also one of the ministers who should take over a larger scope of work, and he himself said that it is quite normal at the European level to merge departments that deal with the aforementioned issues.

''It's important that the ministries that remain, or the new ones that will be created, are all functional and that we show the public that our public administration and the Government can be equally functional or more functional than before with a smaller number of ministers,'' said Aladrovic.

Mario Banozic, the ''first man'' of state property, was still on the same track, saying that nobody was born to be a minister. He explained that he was ready to be left without a ministry, while Goran Grlic Radman, who is in charge of foreign and European affairs, said that he was "serving the homeland".

For more on politics and the forming of the new Croatian Government, follow our dedicated section.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 8th of July, 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic, the Croatian economy is among the three most affected in the EU, and the European Commission's summer forecasts are that our GDP could fall by 10.8 percent. Minister Maric said that Croatia is sticking to its estimate of a 9.1 percent GDP drop, but also announced higher salaries for about a million residents.

When it comes to government finances, Minister Maric reported that back in June, the decline in the amount of fiscalised receipts compared to June last year was about 16.5 percent. As for budget revenues, VAT in June, he pointed out, saw a plus when compared to June 2019, due to the overflow from May, so this isn't a realistic look at things, but since the beginning of the year, tax revenues have fallen by a total of between 13 and 15 percent.

The Croatian Government plans to achieve wage growth by reducing income tax rates from 36 to 30 percent and from 24 to 20 percent, which is a move residents will immediately feel in their pockets and bank accounts.

When asked by journalists whether this means that, due to the reduction of income tax, about a million residents will have higher salaries in the first year of the new government's mandate, he answered briefly: "That's right."

Economist Zeljko Lovrincevic agrees with Miniser Maric's forecast that the economic downturn should be slightly smaller than the European Commission's currently dire estimates. How the drop in GDP will affect the standard of living of Croatian residents, he says, depends primarily on whether there will be compensatory measures for the economy and employment support, and of course the question is then who will finance them. It also depends on what the wage policy will be. What is certain is that the state doesn't have much room to help the economy at this moment in time.

The aid plan is questionable...

When it comes to aid of 10 billion euros that should come from the European Union itself, Lovrincevic noted that there has been no talk of that from Europe.

''That plan hasn't been agreed. That rabbit is still far away in the forest,'' said Lovrincevic.

Economist Damir Novotny said that, if you look at the economic history after the Second World War, there were incomparably worse situations than the one we're in today. Since the 1990s, he recalls, Croatia has had a bad economic situation for a whole decade, due to the Homeland War. The economic situation, he continues, began to improve in 2002, when wages also rose, and then came 2008. As a result of the financial crisis, 150,000 people in the private sector lost their jobs. The state sector then protected itself, taxes were raised in the then-introduced crisis tax, meaning that the state sector passed practically unscathed.

Government measures are crucial

Novotny states that Croatia has had very anemic economic growth over the last ten years, but admits that the government has responded well with its various measures to try to save jobs. How this crisis will affect regular people, he says, is currently difficult to assess. He agrees that it all depends on how long the government’s measures to help the economy will last.

''The big question is how long they can last, but it's certainly not infinite. What happened back in 2009 could happen again if the government's intervention doesn't continue. Recovery must be accelerated and that's something I hope will happen, because today we're in different circumstances than we were back in 2009 because we're also now a member of the EU, where we have access to the anti-recession measures that are offered,'' noted Novotny.

He also pointed out that European Union money, which is intended to help the economy, will probably be conditioned by the implementation of structural reforms, without which, Croatia won't get its pockets filled.

Lovrincevic and Novotny both agree that the situation for Croatia would be much better if we were a member of the European Monetary Union because we would have even more measures at our disposal to help the economy damaged by the coronavirus crisis.

Andrej Plenkovic doesn't have time to wait around for the economic storm that is on its way to Croatia and he will have to quickly put together a team that will be there to face many challenges. The elections will be repeated at one polling station next week, and only after that will the final results of the parliamentary elections be announced. That's when the deadlines for constituting the Parliament and forming a new government will begin. Andrej Plenkovic can calmly wait for consultations with President Zoran Milanovic because he collected the required 76 hands in half a day. He spoke with President Milanovic on Monday, and after the announcement of the final election results, they'll contact him again to arrange a formal meeting.

It is to be expected that Plenkovic could get the mandate to form the Government by the end of next week at the latest, and then he has thirty days to form his new team. The president should convene a constituent session of the Parliament within twenty days of the announcement of the final election results, and HDZ believes that this won't be delayed and that it will occur by the end of this month.

HDZ and its partners hope that the new government will be confirmed during the first few days of August, ie, before the anniversary of Operation Storm (Oluja), on August the 5th. It was announced earlier that the Parliament, once constituted, will certainly not have a break as it has enjoyed so far, but all of that needs to be discussed and worked out.

For more, follow our politics page.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 7th of July, 2020, when asked what the turning point in the election was, Andrej Plenkovic said that several elements had been dealt with and that most of Croatia's voters were aware of the achievements [his government] made in its previous term, which was both difficult and challenging.

''We don't have much time to celebrate,'' HDZ President Andrej Plenkovic said for HRT Dnevnik, announcing, among other things, his plan for the reduction of the number of ministries.

Plenkovic said that the celebration after the recent parliamentary elections in which the HDZ won a convincing victory was short lived.

''We don't have much time to celebrate. There are a lot of people who are asking the Government and Parliament to act,'' said Plenkovic, who announced earlier that they have the support of 76 deputies to win a parliamentary majority.

Plenkovic said that they received support in principle from the representatives of minorities, the Reformists and the HNS, but that there was no discussion about the composition of the Government in terms of personnel or departments. When asked whether he would reduce the number of ministries, he answered in the affirmative.

''We have clearly stated that in our Safe Croatia programme. We're holding consultations on how to adjust the future departments in the most functional, most efficient way, but you'll need to allow us a few more days to consult about it among ourselves,'' said Plenkovic.

As the first steps, among other things, he announced a reduction in income tax, profit tax, and quite remarkably, on VAT on all food…

Plenkovic pointed out that the HDZ won in nine of the eleven constituencies, in two they came second, third and eighth, and they achieved the historically best result.

Asked what the turning point in the election was, he said that several elements had been dealt with and that most voters were aware of the achievements his government made in their previous term, which was difficult and challenging.

''I'm sure that there were mistakes made, but despite that, we did everything we could and knew how to in Croatia's interest. The results were there,'' Plenkovic said.

He said that they had won 23 seats in four Zagreb units, the same as back in 2016, but that this time they had managed to win the left-wing coalition in all units.

Speaking about the reconstruction of Zagreb following the devastating earthquake that hit back in March this year, he said that he would try to find a formula through which they could systematically restore and strengthen many buildings that were damaged.

As for the coronavirus pandemic, he stated once again that it is best to be responsible.

''HDD: hygiene, disinfection and distancing. These are the three elements that will best prevent the spread of the infection,'' said Plenkovic, especially appealing to younger people.

He pointed out that the number of hospitalised people with coronavirus is much lower now than it was back in March and that the number of patients on respirators is now very small.

For more on Croatian politics, follow our dedicated section.

ZAGREB, July 3, 2020 - Homeland Movement leader Miroslav Skoro accused the HDZ and the SDP on Friday of agreeing about their interests, although they were supposed to be political opponents, for example, that it was not necessary to amend the election law or revoke their perks.

Speaking at the final campaign press conference, Skoro said he was not worried about the election results because he believed in a better tomorrow, but that he was worried about a deep rift in Croatian society given that 50% of eligible citizens did not wish to vote.

"We are offering this state the possibility to make a move with good far-reaching consequences. They are offering another move with bad consequences."

Skoro said he feared what would happen after Sunday's election because the epidemiological situation was not good. "The whole world is closing again, only we are opening and exposing ourselves in the interest of one man and two parties, Andrej Plenkovic, in the interest of the HDZ and the SDP."

Plenkovic and Bernardic can't be prime ministers

Asked if he was willing to sit down on Monday and talk about the next government, Skoro said the Homeland Movement was willing to talk with anyone who wished Croatia well. He added, however, that neither HDZ president Plenkovic nor SDP president Davor Bernardic could be a prime minister.

Skoro said he did not think a new election would be called because there were enough smart and wise people who would recognise the need to remove Plenkovic and Bernardic.

ZAGREB, June 30, 2020- HDZ president and Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic and SDP president and Restart Coalition leader Davor Bernardic said on Monday they did not want a grand coalition after the election and that one of their first moves after it would be the adoption of a law on the post-earthquake reconstruction of Zagreb.

"A grand coalition with the SDP, never," Plenkovic said in their first TV debate on RTL television.

Bernardic said a grand coalition was out of the question "with a party on trial for corruption and whose 11 ministers had to leave the government on suspicion of corruption."

He said that after the July 5 vote Restart could form a coalition with left and centre-left parties, but never with Miroslav Skoro's Homeland Movement, Bridge, or Zagreb Mayor Milan Bandic's party.

"A vote for Skoro is obviously a vote for the HDZ," said Bernardic, while Plenkovic said Skoro proved to be a great SDP ally in the presidential election and that he felt centre-right voters would not disperse their votes by voting for Skoro.

Plenkovic asked Bernardic why he would not form a coalition with Bandic, saying he was "his pupil" and that Bandic helped him become the president of the SDP.

Bernardic: HDZ has left Zagreb residents in the lurch; Plenkovic: HDZ has given HRK 1.7 million for reconstruction, you have given nothing

Speaking of the adoption of a Zagreb reconstruction law, Bernardic said Restart would present a bill on Tuesday "because we are responsible and that will be one of our government's first moves."

He said the Plenkovic cabinet left the people of Zagreb in the lurch because they would have no accommodation when winter came, adding that this was irresponsible and should not have happened.

Plenkovic said the HDZ (Croatian Democratic Union), its MPs and government members had donated HRK 1.7 million for the reconstruction of the capital after the March quake and the SDP (Social Democratic Party) nothing, and that in the revised budget the government set aside HRK 141 million for intervention works on damaged buildings.

He added that the state was paying rent for all who could not stay in their flats after the quake and that the government was paying HRK 3 million for the expenses of those temporarily accommodated in a student dorm. "The bill is ready and it will be the first our next parliament will enact."

Bernardic: Ustasha salute should be outlawed

Speaking of the "For the homeland ready" salute, Bernardic said it should be banned by law also in the coat of arms of the HOS militia from the 1991-95 Homeland War. He said the salute suited Serbia and those using it against Croatia. "There is no place for the Ustasha salute in the public sphere."

Plenkovic said a former SDP government legalised the salute in the coat of arms of a Zagreb HOS association, adding that he was personally against it. "It has no place in the public sphere, except in small exemptions which we have done out of respect for Croatian war veterans."

Speaking of the education reform, Bernardic said Restart's goal was to educate children for the labour market, improve PISA test results, and introduce civic education.

Plenkovic said the education reform was launched during the incumbent government which, he added, aligned education with labour market requirements and increased the Science and Education Ministry budget by over 30%.

Plenkovic: Bernardic has shown a lack of knowledge about European topics

Speaking of Croatia's EU presidency, Bernardic said Croatia "slept through it" and that it did not raise the issue of the novel coronavirus or migrants. "We did absolutely nothing during the Croatian presidency."

Plenkovic said Bernardic had shown a lack of knowledge about those topics and that the Croatian presidency had ensured an orderly Brexit and agreed on a mandate for negotiations on future EU-UK relations, among other things, and that Bernardic had never shown the slightest interest in European topics.

Coronavirus response

Speaking of COVID-19, Bernardic said Croatia did not procure the necessary equipment in time and that it was doing too few tests, calling the national response team a political body whose decisions encroached on some constitutional rights.

"You haven't taken any responsibility for the deaths of 20 residents of the (care) home in Split. The lockdown was imposed after elections in the HDZ... You endangered citizens' health then and you are doing the same thing now," said Bernardic.

"Thanks to our engagement, we have not only saved lives and the economy, but we were also the first in the EU to launch a COVID response mechanism, we protected hospitals. In Europe, the virus has claimed most lives in homes for the elderly. Our achievement is that we've had only 107 deaths," Plenkovic responded.

Bernardic: You pushed Croatia into an election; Plenkovic: We wish to have a stable government by autumn

Plenkovic said experts were predicting a second COVID-19 wave in the autumn and that he wished to have a stable new government by then.

Bernardic said Plenkovic had pushed Croatia into a parliamentary election despite a rise in new infections, that he was opening the border with Bosnia and Herzegovina only so that HDZ sympathisers could come to Croatia to vote, and that by refusing to self-isolate after a recent tennis tournament in Zadar, Plenkovic was putting the tourist season at risk.

"Hungary and Slovenia will close their borders. (Their tourists) won't be coming to (our) sea because they will have to self-isolate (upon returning) home," said Bernardic.

He went on to say that if his coalition came to power, it would adopt a moratorium on loan payments because this government, he added, had failed to so, siding with banks. "We have sent a proposal for a shorter work week because of the EU's SURE programme."

"I'm flabbergasted that you want to be prime minister, you know nothing," responded Plenkovic. "The EU Next Generation is a new instrument. My government in October 2016 encountered 9% of contracted funds, 1% paid out. Today we have 96% agreed and 36% paid out. We are fighting to get another €22 billion in the next seven years. I hope such ignorance won't have the opportunity to represent Croatia in the EU. I'm disappointed, you could have prepared, it saddens me."

Bernardic: Who believes you?

Asked about the minimum wage, which amounts to HRK 3,250, Plenkovic said that during the SDP government it went up to HR 250 and during his 750.

"Before COVID, the public debt was reduced to 73% of GDP. It used to be 81%. We are trying to make the quality of life better for everyone. Croatian citizens live better than four years ago," he said, adding that his government had relieved citizens and businesses of HRK 9 billion in taxes.

"Who believes you? Investors don't believe you. We have fallen on the Doing Business ranking. You have collected HRK 15 billion more in taxes, yet you talk about relief. Entrepreneurs are burdened," countered Bernardic.

He said that after the election he would reduce the number of ministries and abolish the State Assets Ministry, calling it a made-up ministry. "Our goal is a smaller state administration, fewer municipalities and towns, and tax relief. Plenkovic and the HDZ had four years, yet they didn't do it."

Plenkovic too announced fewer ministries, saying he would say how many after winning the election.

ZAGREB, June 29, 2020 - Environment and Energy Minister Tomislav Coric said on Monday that the ruling Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) party had declined donations from companies that had received state aid for job retention, calling on the opposition Social Democratic Party (SDP) to do the same given that it had already received such donations.

"The HDZ has so far received about HRK 1.75 million (€233,000) in donations, which is considerably more than our political opponents. This itself speaks of the HDZ's popularity and the inclination to donate funds," Coric, a member of the HDZ's main committee, said in response to questions from the press.

He said that the HDZ would insist on a transparent presentation of campaign costs, adding that even before the election campaign the party had decided to "negatively respond" to certain donations.

"All donations coming from legal entities which in recent months received aid as part of the economic recovery measures for job retention are considered unacceptable by the HDZ. We call on all other parties to follow suit because we are aware of the fact that some political groups in Croatia have received donations from legal entities that benefited from the economic recovery measures. We don't think that's fair," Coric said.

He said that the HDZ had been offered donations from several such businesses but that the party had paid the money into the state budget. He did not reveal details, saying only that those were several smaller legal entities with small donations.

"As far as we know, the SDP has received such donations. We call on them to be responsible in this election time and to refer such donations to the budget," Coric said.

With the Croatian elections rapidly approaching, just how well are the parties doing? As HDZ finds a stronghold in Slavonia, Restart does well in Zagreb and Miroslav Skoro and the Homeland Movement (Domovinski pokret), a somewhat newer face on the political scene, has found his support in the north of Croatia.

As Mislav Bago/Dnevnik writes on the 26th of June, 2020, there are a mere ten days left until the polls open. Dnevnik Nova TV has published the latest info from Crobarometer's survey, which reflects the mood of voters according to the offered lists in the run up to the Croatian elections. It's important to note that the survey was conducted as if Croatia were one single constituency.

HDZ is currently the voters' first choice with support of 26.7 percent. Right behind them is the RESTART coalition with 24.6 percent of support. The Homeland Movement (Domovinski pokret) has received 11.1 percent of support, and MOST is crossing the election threshold, currently counting on just 6.8 percent of voter support.

The HDZ electorate is significantly more male. For example, among younger male voters under the age of 30, the party has received 19 percent of the vote, but among the older males, more precisely those over the age of 60, they've received 38 percent of support. The party seems to be able to count on more support in the countryside, with 31 percent of the vote, and among voters with elementary school education where they would get 49 percent of the vote. Slavonia seems to be a strong stronghold for the HDZ and they're getting an average of 43 percent of the vote there, in Dalmatia they're getting 37 percent, and they're performing very poorly in Zagreb, enjoying just 16 percent of the vote.

The RESTART coalition has more support among Croatian women. They have the support of 18 percent of young voters under the age of 30, and they would get 31 percent of the vote from older voters who are over the age of 60. Among voters with secondary education, they would receive 27 percent support and 25 percent in cities. Zagreb is the best stronghold of the coalition with 30 percent support. In the North of Croatia the coalition enjoys 27 percent of support, in Istria and the Littoral, they also enjoy 32 percent, with Dalmatia at 16 percent and Slavonia at 20 percent.

The Homeland Movement (Domovinski pokret) has received 18 percent of support among younger voters, among those with primary school education, support stands at 12.5 percent, and they appear to have more votes in the countryside - 15 percent. Interestingly, they are the strongest in the north of Croatia with 15 percent, then Zagreb with 12 percent, and there is Dalmatia and Slavonia with 10 percent. They are doing the most poorly in Istria and the Littoral with just 9 percent.

MOST has extremely high support among voters aged 31 to 44, more precisely 11 percent, and among the highly educated, 12 percent. MOST is enjoying 10 percent in Dalmatia, 9 percent in Zagreb, and 7 percent in Istria and the Littoral.

Who is fighting to enter the Croatian Parliament?

The MOŽEMO (WE CAN) coalition, which has united the left, has 4.5 percent of voter support, the other coalition, Stranka s imenom i prezimenom (the Party with a Name and Surname), Fokus (Focus) and Pametno (Smart), has 4.1 percent, and the joint Živi zid (Living wall) and Ivan Pernar are at 3.3 percent of support.

Interestingly, when looking at the regions, MOŽEMO is extremely strong in Zagreb, enjoying 13.6 percent of the vote. The coalition Pametno, Stranka s imenom i prezimenom and Fokus are also at 7 percent in Zagreb, and finally the coalition of Živi zid and Ivan Pernar is dancing around the election threshold in Istria and the Littoral.

Other parties are below 1 percent, for example Radimir Cacic's Reformists have 0.7 percent, HNS has 0.6 percent, and Bandic's party 0.5 percent. 12.5 percent are undecided.

Croatian elections aside for now, the president is losing popularity...

The president, Zoran Milanovic, is receiving less and less support for his work and currently every second respondent evaluates his work negatively, and only 39 percent of them approve of his work.

All politicians are losing popularity in the run up to the Croatian elections

As stated, the president's popularity is dropping, with 47 percent of respondents having a negative view of his work. HDZ's Andrej Plenkovic has entered the end of the campaign with the support of 44 percent of citizens who have a positive impression of him, and 48 percent have a negative one.

Miroslav Skoro is also falling, he can currently count on a mere 39 percent of citizens having a positive impression of him, and 52 percent of them think of him negatively.

Bozo Petrov can count on 37 percent of citizens who think positively about him, and 49 percent of them who think negatively.

Davor Bernardic also cannot count on majority support, 26 percent of citizens have a positive impression of him, and 59 percent of them have a negative impression.

Finally, 20 percent of citizens have a positive impression of Milan Bandic, and 73 percent of them have a negative impression.

In the run up to the Croatian elections, it can be seen that the government is losing support, and the country itself is sinking into a state of pessimism...

The Croatian Government has not counted on majority support for a long time now. Currently, 59 percent of citizens do not approve of the work of the HDZ-run government, and only 32 percent of them approve of it.

This is very much in line with the direction in which Croatia is going, because 70 percent of the country's citizens think that Croatia is heading in the wrong direction currently, and only 21 percent of them are optimistic.

What are the problems Croatian citizens have highlighted?

Unemployment comes first and foremost, it is the first and biggest problem for 25 percent of Croatian citizens. The economic situation is the biggest problem for 19 percent of citizens. Crime and corruption are a big problem for 16 percent of citizens. Living standards and low wages are considered a problem by 7 percent of citizens, and 5 percent of them consider the coronavirus pandemic to be the biggest problem.

FOOTNOTE: This pre-election survey was conducted by IPSOS on 978 Croatian citizens by telephone from the 22nd to the 24th of June, 2020. The maximum error margin in a sample is +/- 3.3 percent, and for party ratings +/- 3.6 percent.

For more on the Croatian elections and on politics in general in Croatia, follow our dedicated section.

ZAGREB, June 20, 2020 - Prime Minister and HDZ leader Andrej Plenkovic said on Saturday that the HDZ would invest maximum effort in the reconstruction of Zagreb and its historical centre damaged in the March 22 earthquake.

Speaking at a presentation of party candidates running in the July 5 elections in Constituency No. 1, Plenkovic said that the damage to the city had been estimated at €11.5 billion euros.

He said it would take at least ten years for the city to be reconstructed in such a way "to be safe and for its citizens to be given what they need after that big natural disaster."

Plenkovic recalled his government's results, citing an increase in employment and a decline in unemployment, a healthy economic growth, an increase in wages and pensions, etc.

He said that this was the reason why his party had wanted to hold parliamentary elections in the summer, when the intensity of the COVID-19 pandemic is lowest, to win voters' trust and continue working to the benefit of all citizens.

Plenkovic said that his government would continue reducing taxes, noting that the tax burden on citizens and the business sector had been reduced in the amount of nine billion kuna.

He went on to say that his government would reduce income tax and VAT on all food.

The HDZ wants to create conditions by the end of the term for the average wage to grow from the current HRK 6,700 to HRK 7,600, to raise the minimum wage to HRK 4,250 and to secure an additional HRK 10 billion for active employment measures, as well as create an additional 100,000 jobs, he said.

This will be possible to achieve through the EU's new seven-year budget which, in its current form, envisages 11.5 billion euros for Croatia, he said.

In addition to that, we will get more than €10 billion through the EU's plan for economic recovery, said the PM.