ZAGREB, 9 April, 2021 - Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković on Friday extended his condolences to Queen Elizabeth II, the royal family and British people on the death of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh.

"On behalf of the Croatian Government, I express my most heartfelt condolences to Her Majesty The Queen @RoyalFamily and the British people on the passing of the Duke of Edinburgh. Prince Philip will be remembered for his lifetime of service to the United Kingdom," Plenković tweeted.

The Queen's husband died in Windsor aged 99, Buckingham Palace said.

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ZAGREB, 7 April, 2021 - Prime Minister Andrej Plenković said on Wednesday that someone who planned to be president of the Supreme Court was expected to respect the law, which "is the prerequisite of every reform."

He was responding during Question Time to MP Arsen Bauk of the opposition Social Democratic Party, who said Plenković was preventing changes in the judiciary, that Croatia was the least vaccinated EU member state, that COVID-19 measures were being applied selectively and that there was no reconstruction after last year's earthquakes.

Plenković accused the SDP "and the whole left" of trying to create an "awful" atmosphere as if tomorrow there would be no wages, electricity or gas.

He said Croatia ordered 8.7 million vaccine doses and that people would be vaccinated, but that the government could not be responsible if a big drugs company had problems with its vaccine, production and distribution. "Other countries are in this situation too."

Bauk said Plenković did not refute any of his claims and that citizens believed the president more in his row with the prime minister over the election of the new Supreme Court president.

Bauk concurred with other opposition MPs' criticisms of the ruling HDZ's policies and their rejection of the possibility that Plenković's party could transform itself.

He said the HDZ's "core won't change, it's always more or less the same" and that "the HDZ has always functioned on doctrines of (...) sustainable nationalism and clientelism."

SDP MP says minister tried to bribe her

SDP MP Mirela Ahmetović said that "one of your ministers (...) personally offered me a bribe to keep quiet about all the illegal and negative things" about the LNG project off Krk island, and that as a result of the project the gas price for households went up 80% on 1 April.

Plenković accused her of having boycotted the project "dreamed of for 40 years", saying it would reduce the price of gas and that this benefitted Ahmetović as head of Omišalj Municipality.

He also dismissed claims by Marijana Puljak (Centre) that he was protecting Vice Mihanović, the HDZ's candidate for mayor of Split who is under suspicion of having plagiarised a scientific paper.

He said Mihanović had a doctorate and that it was up to the relevant commissions to decide on his doctoral dissertation, adding that Ivica Puljak, Marijana Puljak's husband, would certainly lose to Mihanović in the Split mayoral race.

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ZAGREB, 7 April, 2021 - PM Andrej Plenković said on Wednesday, in a comment on the death of a 2.5-year-old girl caused by domestic violence, that the decision to return the child to its biological family was bad and that those who made it should bear the consequences, noting that social care did not require a separate ministry.

"I don't know why the proposal to separate social care from the 'mega-ministry' is being made," Plenković told reporters in the parliament.

He recalled that in 2013, during the term of the Zoran Milanović government, a case similar to the last one happened in Slavonski Brod, and at the time there was a separate ministry of social care.

When they lack arguments, people make banal, nonsensical statements, Plenković said, adding that Labour, Pension System, Family and Social Policy Minister Josip Aladrović was capable of heading the ministry because the ministry had its services, directors, state secretaries and social welfare centres across Croatia.

"In this specific case with a fatal outcome, the assessment and decision to return the little girl to her biological family was a bad one and for that kind of professional mistake responsibility lies with those who make it," he said.

Plenković went on to say that since the case of an incident on Pag Island in 2019, when a father threw his four underage children from the first-storey balcony of his house, a lot had changed in the social care system.

"During the terms of ministers (Nada) Murganić, (Vesna) Bedeković and now Minister Aladrović, we have worked to strengthen the system of social care. We have worked to raise social workers' wages as well as standards of physical and technical security, so now welfare centres have guards," he said.

The government has increased outlays for social care and allowances and it expects the system to function better and to the benefit of children, he said.

Unfortunately, there are problems, there are dysfunctional families, horrible things are done by biological parents but they will all answer for their actions in a legal procedure, Plenković said, adding that he was appalled and extremely saddened by the latest case.

Speaking of illogical provisions in the foster care law, adopted by his government, Plenković said that every legal solution could be improved.

It is important to speed up foster care procedures and that all children who live in environments that are not appropriate and not safe find a safe place to live. We will improve the law. There is always something to improve, he said.

AstraZeneca vaccine

Plenković also talked about a decision the European Medicines Agency is expected to make on the age groups for which the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine is acceptable.

He said he would meet today with Health Minister Vili Beroš and the directors of the Croatian Institute of Public Health and the Croatian agency for medicinal products to discuss the information they had, and that later today Beroš would participate in a video conference of EU health ministers.

"The most important thing is that the member states' ministers of health have a consolidated position, whatever the EMA's recommendation, and that there are no different practices. Different practices undermine the reputation of a vaccine, whatever its quality, which has happened with AstraZeneca from the start, unfortunately."

Plenković said the confusion about that vaccine had resulted in some people refusing it, which was not pleasant either for the company or anyone involved in vaccination.

He also responded to criticism that he had promised that a majority of the Croatian population would be vaccinated by spring yet had now postponed this until July.

He said AstraZeneca had promised to deliver 120 million doses to the EU in the first quarter but delivered 30 million. Croatia was to have received 1.7 million doses by 31 March and vaccinated more than 800,000 people, he added.

Plenković said 600,000 doses had been delivered and that 2.6 million would be by 30 June, adding that the government was working on having other vaccines available in case of more problems with AstraZeneca.

"Had we ordered 100% from each company and paid for 25 million doses, then all questions would have been - whose money are we spending and why are we buying three or four times as many doses as we need?"

He said an unforeseen thing had happened, not with a no-name company but one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world.

Central bank governor, fighter jets, former JANAF CEO's arrest

Asked if he had known about central bank governor Boris Vujčić's correspondence with representatives of the Knighthead fund concerning the Agrokor conglomerate, Plenković said the question should be put to Vujčić.

Speaking of the procurement of fighter jets, he said consultations were under way and that a decision would be made in time. All offers are valid and we'll take some more time to decide, he added.

Asked to comment on the new arrest of Dragan Kovačević, former CEO of the JANAF oil pipeline operator, Plenković said everything about it should be said by the USKOK anti-corruption office and the State Attorney's Office.

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ZAGREB, 1 April, 2021 - The National Recovery and Resilience Plan for 2021-26 is the government's plan for the reform and transformation of Croatia, Prime Minister Andrej Plenković said on Thursday, presenting the plan after a cabinet meeting.

Investment in education, science and research, labour and welfare legislation, healthcare and post-earthquake reconstruction is estimated at HRK 18 billion.

The plan will contribute to the development of a quality education and science system, the stimulation of excellence and innovativeness in children, youth and scientists, and the creation of new and innovative employment policies, Plenković told press.

The plan will also contribute to enhancing the pension system, to quality social protection, the modernisation of healthcare, and to energy-efficient and earthquake-resistant buildings, for which additional funds have been ensured, he said.

Modernising science and education system for more resilient economy

The government plans to reform the education system and raise research and innovation capacities, strengthening scientific excellence and stimulating open science and cooperation with the business sector.

The plan also envisages raising the quality of vocational programmes relevant to the labour market. Another objective is to increase investment in the research infrastructure, strengthening Croatia's innovativeness.

Investment in education, science and research is estimated at HRK 7.5 billion.

Increasing employability of all age groups

The general objective of the labour market and welfare component is to keep workers employed and increase the employment rate, create prerequisites for job creation, reduce unemployment and curb unreported labour.

The plan aims to facilitate access to adult education and reduce in-work poverty by redefining minimum wage and ensuring just pay.

The government plans to improve the pension system by increasing pension adequacy as well as the social welfare system by reducing poverty risk and social exclusion and ensuring additional and better accommodation in care homes.

Investment in the labour market and welfare is estimated at over HRK 2 billion.

Increasing healthcare system's resilience

As for the healthcare component, goals include strengthening the system so that it can respond to the challenges posed by chronic non-infectious and emerging infectious diseases and ensuring accessible and quality healthcare, said Health Minister Vili Beroš.

The system will be modernised, among other things, through accelerated digitalisation and the application of new methods and technologies, hospitals will be functionally integrated, while the reduction of their number and the expansion of public procurement is expected to cut costs and markedly improve the financial viability of the system.

Investment in the healthcare component is estimated at over HRK 2.5 billion.

Full transformation of building sector

The National Recovery and Resilience Plan also envisages the reconstruction of buildings, also as a contribution to economic recovery from the COVID-19 crisis, reducing the environmental impact of energy consumption and pollution, and increasing the energy efficiency of buildings.

Other goals include meeting climate targets, efficient and coordinated post-earthquake reconstruction and increasing earthquake-resistant construction.

Investment in this component is envisaged at nearly HRK 6 billion.

(€1 = HRK 7.5)

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ZAGREB, 31 March (Hina) - The State Judicial Council (DSV) on Wednesday issued a new public call for applications for the post of Supreme Court President.

All interested candidates are required to submit their applications over the next 30 days, DSV president Darko Milković said.

President Zoran Milanović informed the DSV in a letter last week that he would not propose any of the candidates from the previous call and called for the repetition of the procedure. He said he had no intention of influencing the procedure but wanted to help improve the functioning of the judicial branch of government and ensure the functioning of the State Electoral Commission after the expiry of the term of the current Supreme Court President.

The incumbent Supreme Court President Đuro Sessa, whose term expires in July, and attorneys-at-law Šime Savić and Lidija Horvat responded to the first public call. Horvat has in the meantime withdrawn her application.

Insisting on his constitutional right to propose a candidate, Milanović proposed Professor Zlata Đurđević as his candidate for Supreme Court President, but Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković refused to include his proposal on Parliament's agenda, saying that it was unlawful. Milanović claimed that lawmakers would have to vote on his candidate anyway.

Last week, the Constitutional Court ruled that the President of the Republic can only propose a candidate who has responded to a public call issued by the DSV. The court said that this does not restrict the constitutional right of the President of the Republic to propose his candidate for Supreme Court President.

Prime Minister Andrej Plenković said that Đurđević, although a criminal law professor, had agreed to be part of an unlawful procedure and could therefore not lead the highest judicial authority in the country. Parliamentary right-wing opposition parties also announced that they would not support Đurđević.

Đurđević confirmed last Thursday that she would not give up on her candidacy and would respond to a new DSV call. Sessa has announced that he will not run for another term because he does not have the President's support.

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ZAGREB, 30 March, 2021 - Prime Minister Andrej Plenković said on Tuesday that with his posts on social networks, President Zoran Milanović "has stepped out of the framework of normal conduct for a president," adding that his hate speech has "practically drawn a target on MP Milorad Pupovac."

Milanović wrote on his Facebook profile on Monday that "before he runs away to Brussels," Plenković would have to render his accounts, with Plenković saying that the President was continuing his ranting and insults.

"These are threats in fact, accusations of political corruption, robbery, criminal conspiracy. I will say once again, he has entirely stepped out of the framework of normal conduct for a president," Plenković told a press conference during a visit to Osijek-Baranja County.

That is not just his style or his being rude, as the leader of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) Peđa Grbin tried to downplay, said Plenković who considers that Milanović has resorted to that because he was legally and politically badly defeated in the incorrect procedure which he, without any cause, began with the recommendation of the president of the Supreme Court.

Plenković said that the President's spokesman Nikola Jelić was flustered and warned that he was attacking Hina reporters. Jelić publicly called out Hina reporter Sandra Bartolović on his Twitter account because of her sharp private comments regarding Milanović's behaviour and said that Plenković had referred to anyone who did not think like him as being the "dregs of social networks."

Milanović's posts are the "dregs of social networks"

"That is frightening and striking. I will now explain that to his flustered spokesman who attacks Hina reporters when I said "dregs of social networks," because I see that he and his partners in Bridge do not understand what that means. For me that is hate that is developing and damaging, poisoning society," said Plenković.

"Milanović's statements are the dregs of social networks. What he is writing is hate speech and I will be absolutely explicit - he has practically drawn a  target on MP Pupovac, and Pupovac confirmed that this morning on the radio," underscored Plenković.

He once again called out SDP's candidate for Zagreb mayor Joško Klisović and Milanović's chief-of-staff Orsat Miljenić to stop hiding and say if  they agree with Milanović's "drawing a target on the leader of the SDSS (Independent Democratic Serbian Party)."

"Do we all think that we need to wake up from what he is doing or will we just say 'he's like that.' That cannot be. He can rant on as he likes but he will come across sharp responses from us all who have sound reason," said Plenković.

Asked whether he was referring to hate speech in the legal sense, Plenković answered affirmatively. "What is this, what does this look like? We need to wake up. We have become a little too tolerant," he said and called on reporters and editors to "watch and see who is saying what and make it clear who is who."

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ZAGREB, 30 March, 2021 - Prime Minister Andrej Plenković said on Tuesday that Finance Minister Zdravko Marić and Health Minister Vili Beroš would meet with drug wholesalers over the debt for drugs and that a certain amount would be paid in the days ahead.

Representatives of drug wholesalers, pharmacists and drug manufacturers warned last week that the supply of medicines could be restricted due to the HRK 6.5 billion debt, and the Medika company today suspended deliveries to hospitals.

Visiting Osijek-Baranja County, Plenković told press this was a usual situation. "Every once in a while, when an important date is due, whether Christmas, Easter or election day, wholesale drug suppliers unanimously start asking for the money they are due."

"We'll talk about it, the ministers of finance and health will meet with them and certain funds will be paid in the days ahead."

Asked about the payment date, Plenković said the ministers would discuss it. "I'm not an accountant to talk with them about the exact payment date."

The CEO of Oktalpharma, Ivan Klobučar, supported Medika's move, telling N1 television that the government, the Health Ministry, the Croatian Health Insurance Fund and Minister Beroš had been ignoring their appeals for a meeting for three months.

He said the situation was such that those responsible would see how difficult the situation was when "patients and others who are not at fault at all bear the brunt." If someone urgently needs a medicine, they will not get it, he added.

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ZAGREB, 26 March, 2021 - Croatia has received only 17% of coronavirus vaccine doses ordered from AstraZeneca, Prime Minister Andrej Plenković told a press conference on Friday.

The European Union has ordered 120 million doses of the vaccine from AstraZeneca and has received only 30 million, which is why Croatia lacks the vaccine, Plenković said.

Permanent representatives to the European Union have been tasked with arranging the distribution of 10 million doses of the Pfizer vaccine as soon as possible, in a spirit of solidarity, the prime minister said, reporting on the results of the EU summit held on Thursday.

About 405 million people live in countries that do not have a problem with vaccines and about 40 million in countries that have not received the amounts of vaccines ordered, so these 10 million doses would resolve the problem for the countries that are not receiving vaccines, while the others would not feel they missed something, he added.

In a joint statement on Thursday, EU leaders asked the ambassadors to the EU to resolve the problem of distribution of 10 million doses of the vaccine that BioNTech/Pfizer will deliver in the second quarter of the year instead of the second half.

"That means that those who have less will get more," Plenković said, adding that the aim was to compensate the countries that have ordered the most vaccine from AstraZeneca and less from other manufacturers.

About six or seven countries should be compensated, including Croatia, which would help achieve even vaccine coverage within the EU, the Croatian PM said.

Plenković denied claims that Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz used strong language at the meeting. Kurz was the first EU leader to draw attention to the uneven distribution of vaccines among the EU member states.

Plenković denied the speculation that the agreement would have been reached already yesterday had it not been for the Austrian chancellor's statement. "No, that was not possible, technically. Had we been physically present in Brussels - maybe, there would have been breaks and we would have explained things to one another."

"Anyway, this will be sorted. Pfizer will fill in the gap created by AstraZeneca's failure to meet its obligations," the PM said, adding that Bulgaria should get the most doses.

With the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine doses as compensation, Croatia hopes to vaccinate 50% of its population by 30 June, which would put it on a level with the EU.

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ZAGREB, 25 March, 2021 - State Judicial Council (DSV) head Darko Milković on Thursday confirmed receipt of a notification from the Office of the President, announcing that a new public call for the post of Supreme Court President would be advertised in a couple of days and that interested candidates would be invited to apply.

In an interview with the N1 broadcaster, Milković said that only the head of state could request a new public call or it could be done by their office on their behalf and that that could not be done "by Parliament or an individual MP."

President Milanović earlier in the day called on the DSV to urgently repeat the public call for applications for the post of Supreme Court President, informing it that he would not nominate any of the three applicants following a previous public call.

His office stressed that the President's proposal "is not intended to influence in any way the DSV's constitutionally and legally defined powers" but that the President wanted, "in the current chaotic situation, caused by changes to the Courts Act, to contribute to the best possible and most efficient functioning of the judicial authorities as well as enable the functioning of the State Election Commission after the expiry of the term of the current Supreme Court President."

The Supreme Court President also serves as the chair of the State Election Commission.

Applications following the DSV's previous public call were submitted by Supreme Court President Đuro Sessa, whose term expires in July, and attorneys Šime Savić and Lidija Horvat, with the latter having in the meantime withdrawn her application.

Milanović insists that proposing a candidate for the Supreme Court President is his constitutional right and he has proposed Zagreb law professor Zlata Đurđević for that post. However, Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković has refused to put his motion on Parliament's agenda as unlawful.

Milanović has said that members of Parliament will nonetheless have to vote on his nominee.

The Constitutional Court on Tuesday concluded that the head of state can propose only a candidate who has submitted an application following a public call by the DSV and it claims that this does not restrict the President's constitutional right to propose a candidate and Parliament's right to elect them.

Prime Minister Andrej Plenković said on Wednesday that even though she was a law professor, Đurđević had agreed to be part of an unlawful procedure and that therefore she could not lead the highest judicial body.

"A person who does not respect the legal order cannot be the President of the Supreme Court because that body protects the legal order, the Constitution, international treaties, all laws," he said.

Đurđević confirmed on Thursday that she did not plan to give up on her candidacy and that she would submit an application following a new public call by the DSV.

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ZAGREB, 24 March, 2021 - Prime Minister Andrej Plenković, Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković and Health Minister Vili Beroš were vaccinated with the AstraZeneca vaccine at Government House on Tuesday, and Beroš said that they had sent a message of confidence in medical science and the medical profession.

"Today we have sent a strong message of confidence in medical science, the medical profession, primarily because we were vaccinated with the AstraZeneca vaccine. We will continue to work diligently on vaccinating Croatian citizens so that they could continue living and working with as little risk of infection as possible. Every vaccinated individual contributes to the protection of the population and is definitely a step towards our old normal, and a step closer to a successful tourist season," Beroš told reporters after the vaccination.

He added that there were still many challenges ahead and that it was important to think about future challenges such as new variants of the virus.

"I believe that with this message we have encouraged citizens to follow us on that path, to curb the epidemic and return to our normal life," Beroš said.

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