News

Zagreb - The Croatian Parliament passed the Agriculture Bill on Friday, setting out agricultural policy goals and measures and a framework for their implementation. The measures concern rural development, direct aid, the agricultural market and other policy areas.

Zagreb - Parliament on Friday passed a set of six bills for the comprehensive pension reform. The reform which enters into force as of 1 January 2019 foresees extending working life to 67 as of 2033.

Zagreb - Croatia strongly supports Albania's reform efforts on its journey toward the European Union and is prepared to provide technical assistance in that, Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković said on Tuesday during a meeting with Albania's Prime Minister Edi Rama, who was in Zagreb attending a summit of the Central European Initiative.

Zagreb - Croatian Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković on Monday held separate meetings with the visiting prime ministers, Viktor Orban of Hungary, Zoran Zaev of Macedonia and Vasilica Viorica Dancila of Romania, who arrived in Zagreb for a two-day summit meeting of the Central European Initiative (CEI) in Zagreb.

Zagreb - The Croatian parliament on Monday unanimously reappointed current State Auditor Ivan Klešić for another, eight-year term. Klešić was the only candidate for the post. His current term expires on December 10.

Zagreb - The Croatian Parliament on Monday adopted the 2019 state budget and projections for 2020 and 2021, with revenues in 2019 totalling over HRK 136 billion and expenditures over HRK 140 billion. The budget was adopted with 79 votes in favour, 45 against and one abstention.

Zagreb - Croatian Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković on Sunday extended his best wishes to the Jewish faithful on the occasion of Hanukkah, also known as the Festival of Lights.

Zagreb - Within the framework of the Presidency of the Republic of Croatia over the Central European Initiative, the Parliamentary Assembly of the CEI Parliamentary Dimension was held today in the Croatian Parliament, with the participation of MPs from eleven CEI Member States.

Zagreb - At the end of the Interparliamentary Conference “The Role of Parliaments in Shaping the Future of Food and Farming, in the context of the Presidency of the Council of the EU trio, Doina Silistru, Chair of the Committee on Agriculture, Food Industry and Rural Development of Romanian Senate, Alexandru Stănescu, Chair of the Committee on Agriculture, Forestry, Food Industry and Special Services of the Romanian Chamber of Deputies and Chair of the Croatian Parliament's Agriculture Committee, Tomislav Panenić signed a Statement of Readiness for Developing Cooperation and Partnership in the Process of Further Discussions on the EU's Common Agricultural Policy.

Zagreb – At the end of the first day of the Interparliamentary Conference on “The Role of Parliaments in Shaping the Future of Food and Farming” the participants discussed issues related to agricultural research and food safety and quality.

Zagreb - The second session of the two-day Interparliamentary Conference held in the Croatian Parliament on "The Role of Parliaments in the Future of Food and Farming" was dedicated to generational renewal.

Zagreb – Croatian Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković opened on Thursday the Interparliamentary Conference “The Role of Parliaments in Shaping the Future of Food and Farming”, held in the Croatian Parliament on 22 and 23 November 2018.

Zagreb - Zoran Pičuljan has been appointed as the new Information Commissioner, after a secret ballot in parliament, with 87 lawmakers voting in his favour and 22 voting in favour of his opponent, Dubravka Bevandić.

Vienna – Within the parliamentary dimension framework of the Austrian Presidency of the Council of the European Union LX COSAC, Conference of the Committees of the National Parliaments of the European Union Member States dealing with the European Union affairs, meeting was held in Vienna, 18 to 20 November 2018.

Zagreb - Croatian Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković on Monday received the visiting Qatari emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, and on that occasion the Croatian official expressed confidence that this reciprocal official visit would be conducive to efforts to boost bilateral relations, the press office of the Croatian parliament stated.

Zagreb - State and other official delegations on Sunday laid wreaths and lit candles at the Homeland War Memorial Cemetery in Vukovar, on the occasion of Vukovar Remembrance Day and the 27th anniversary of the city's fall into the hands of the Yugoslav People's Army (JNA) and Serb paramilitaries on 18 November 1991, after a three-month siege.

Zagreb - Croatia Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković said on Sunday that message from Vukovar to Croatia and the world is that war is the worst solution to conflicts and that regardless of all the tragedy, in the end this was a great victory.

Zagreb - Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković, who was on a two-day working visit to Italy, on Friday held meetings with Vice President of the Italian Chamber of Deputies, Maria Edera Spadoni, and the chairwoman of the foreign and European affairs committee of the Chamber of Deputies, Marta Grande, which confirmed a high level of relations between Italy and Croatia.

Zagreb - Croatian Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković on Thursday in Rome visited the Croatian church of St Jerome and the Pontifical Croatian College of St. Jerome , a Catholic college, church and a society in the city of Rome intended for the schooling of Croatian clerics.

Helsinki - Croatia and Finland will preside over the European Union in times full of challenges and they are ready to fully cooperate and support one another, Croatian Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković and his Finnish counterpart Paula Risikko said at their meeting in Helsinki on Wednesday.

Dubrovnik - Croatian Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković, speaking in Dubrovnik on Tuesday, emphasised the importance of cooperation between northern and southern Mediterranean countries, adding that Croatia wanted to promote stability and peace in the Mediterranean.

Dubrovnik – The International Parliamentary Conference “Building democratic security in the Mediterranean: common challenges, shared responsibility” was held on Tuesday as part of Croatia’s Chairmanship of the Council of Europe Committee of Ministers, organized by the Committee on Political Affairs and Democracy of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) and the Croatian Parliament.

Zagreb - Members of the European Affairs Committee, Finance and Central Budget Committee, Committee on the Economy, Labour, Retirement System and the Social Partnership Committee and the Committee on Regional Development and European Union Funds held a meeting with the Vice-President of the European Commission and the Commissioner for Euro and Social Dialogue, Valdis Dombrovskis.

Zagreb - An interparliamentary conference on the proposal of a new legal framework for the European Union's common agricultural policy for the next programme period will be held in the Croatian Parliament on November 22-23, the Chairman of the Croatian Parliament's Agriculture Committee, Tomislav Panenić, and Agriculture Minister Tomislav Tolušić announced on Monday.

Osijek - Croatian Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković and his Hungarian counterpart Laszlo Kövér laid a foundation stone in Osijek on Wednesday for a student dormitory of the Hungarian Education and Culture Centre. The HRK 8.5 million investment will be financed from the Croatian budget and the dorm is expected to be built in 300 days. It will house 50 students.

Pecs - Croatian Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković met with his Hungarian counterpart Laszlo Kövér in Pecs on Wednesday, expressing great satisfaction with the level of rights enjoyed by the Croatian minority in Hungary and the Hungarian minority in Croatia, and pointing out that the two countries were an example of how countries should care for their ethnic minorities.

Vienna – Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee Mr. Miro Kovač, Chairman of the Defence Committee Mr. Igor Dragovan and Deputy Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee Mr. Joško Klisović participated at the two-day Conference for the EU's Common Foreign and Security Policy and the Common Security and Defence Policy (CFSP/CSDP), organized within the scope of the Austrian Presidency of the Council of the European Union.

Zagreb - Parliament on Friday endorsed, with 78 votes in favour and 52 against, the annual report on government performance in 2017 which Prime Minister Andrej Plenković submitted this week.

Brussels – Member of the Croatian Parliament Delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), Ante Babić participated at the High-level Conference on the future of international election observation, co-organized by the European Parliament and the European Union External Action Service in the premises of the European Parliament in Brussels.

Zagreb - Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković sent a letter of congratulations on the occasion of Independence Day which Croatia celebrates on 8 October, and in his message he underscores that the 1991-1995 war of independence and its values lay the foundations for the present-day Croatia.

Zagreb - Croatian Deputy Parliament Speaker Željko Reiner in Zagreb on Tuesday received the Italian Order of the Star decoration for promoting the Italian language and culture. 

Bruxelles - In his capacity as envoy of the Speaker of the Croatian Parliament, the Deputy Chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee Joško Klisović attended the 10th Asia-Europe Parliamentary Partnership Meeting (ASEP 10) hosted by the European Parliament.

Zagreb - The Croatian Parliament Committee on Home Affairs and National Security on Wednesday endorsed the annual report on police work in 2017, paying special attention to the migrant crisis.

Brussels – Deputy Chair of the Domestic Policy and National Security Committee, Petar Škorić participated at the 3rd Meeting of the Joint Parliamentary Scrutiny Group on the European Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation (Europol).

Zagreb - Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković on Monday presented the European Citizen's Prize for 2018 to the Croatian Office for Creativity and Innovations (HUKI), an NGO committed to promoting entrepreneurial culture and education about creative and innovative approaches to solving real-world challenges in local communities.

Zadar - Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković on Sunday visited the coastal city of Zadar, where he discussed local projects with the city's leaders, noting that Zadar was developing well. "I believe the situation will be even better in the future. We discussed a number of projects that are financed with EU funds in the amount of EUR 35 million," Jandroković told reporters.

Zagreb - Croatian Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković met with visiting Austrian President Alexander Van der Bellen on Tuesday, and the two officials confirmed the two countries' traditionally friendly and intensive relations.

Zagreb - Croatian Parliament President Gordan Jandroković on Monday extended his best wishes to the Jewish faithful in Croatia for Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year.

Zagreb - Croatian Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković met with Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev during his official visit to Zagreb on Thursday, and they agreed that there was great potential for improving trade between the two countries.

Zagreb - During the migrant crisis it became again evident that southeast Europe had strategic importance, Croatian Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković said in Dubrovnik on Saturday, expressing regret that the European Union failed to systematically deal with that region.

Zagreb - Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković said that everything the Croatian people ever wanted, namely a free, independent, modern and democratic Croatia, was achieved 23 years ago, when the Croatian flag was hoisted at the Knin fortress, which symbolically marked the end of the Homeland War.

Zagreb - Croatian Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković on Wednesday met with Israeli President Reuven Rivlin who is on an official visit to Croatia.

Zagreb - The Croatian parliament on Friday adopted amendments to several laws, including the Forests Act which is to ensure better management of forests and forest land.

Zagreb - The Croatian parliament on Friday adopted amendments to the Education Act, setting out the purpose, goals, structure and method of adopting documents relating to the curricular reform, and providing for a 30% increase in wages for teachers involved in EU projects being implemented in schools.

Zagreb - The Croatian Parliament on Friday, after nearly three years, appointed a Council for Civilian Oversight of Security and Intelligence Agencies, which ceased to exist in late 2015 when the term of its then members of the council expired.

Zagreb - The Croatian National Bank (HNB) on Friday got a new leadership after the parliament re-appointed Boris Vujčić as HNB governor for a six-year term, while Sandra Švaljek was appointed his deputy and Slavko Tešija, Roman Šubić and Martina Drvar HNB vice-governors.

Zagreb - The 32-million-kuna renovated Bishop's Palace in Dubrovnik was formally inaugurated at a ceremony on Tuesday, and local Catholic Bishop Mate Uzinić will move into the palace on 21 September.

Zagreb - Croatian Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković congratulated the national football team and its selector Zlatko Dalić on winning a World Cup quarter-finals match against Russia in Sochi and securing their place among the world's four best national football teams.

Zagreb - The 10th anniversary of the establishment of the ombudsperson's office for the disabled was observed in parliament on Monday with ombudswoman Anka Slonjšak underscoring that her mission is to "contribute to creating a society in which despite their differences and limitations, citizens will have equal opportunities in life and at work."

Zagreb - Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković on Sunday issued a Statehood Day message, wishing that the harmony and togetherness which led Croats in the creation of a free, independent and democratic Croatia be an additional incentive to continue to develop Croatian society on patriotism, dialogue, tolerance, the harmonising of differences and cooperation to the benefit of all Croats at home and abroad.