News

Zagreb - The Government's April package of measures to bail out the economy affected by the corona crisis received strong support in the parliament on Tuesday. 

Zagreb - Parliament on Tuesday sent a bill o amendments to the law on electronic communication to a second reading, which would legalise broader surveillance of citizens' mobile phones as a measure in the fight against coronarvirus.

Zagreb - Parliament on Tuesday debated a package of 10 bills proposed by the Social Democratic Party (SDP) aimed at helping the most vulnerable population to weather the hardships caused by the coronavirus pandemic. The set included measures such as a 12-month loan repayment moratorium and aid for the unemployed and pensioners.

Zagreb - Croatia has found a good balance in dealing with the coronavirus pandemic, between protecting public health and fundamental values and freedoms, and it has been shown that the state is functioning very well in the present time of crisis, Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković said. 

Zagreb - Speaker Gordan Jandroković said on Monday Parliament could resume sitting in its building in St. Mark's Square, which was damaged in the March 22 earthquake, after Easter.

Zagreb - Croatian lawmakers on Monday again appealed to the Government to help local agricultural producers and vulnerable social groups affected by the coronavirus crisis.

Zagreb - Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković announced on Thursday that Prime Minister Plenković would present the new package of measures to help the economy in the crisis caused by the coronavirus epidemic to Parliament on Friday, which MPs would discuss for two days and which would be put to a vote next Tuesday.

Zagreb - Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković said on Wednesday that the Parliament was continuing its business as usual and refuted criticism that decisions pertaining to human rights should be adopted by a two-third majority in the legislature in the current circumstances, too.

Zagreb - Lawmakers on Friday commended the national civil protection authority, thanked the people on the front lines in the fight against coronavirus and called on citizens to adhere to the instructions issued by relevant services and to act responsibly.

Zagreb - Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković said on Wednesday that all state institutions were cooperating well and that protecting people's lives and health with as few consequences as possible was the main priority in the current crisis caused by the outbreak of the novel coronavirus.  

Zagreb - The Croatian Parliament opened Wednesday's sitting with a minute of silence for a 15-year-old girl fatally injured in the earthquake in Zagreb on Sunday. Parliament convened in the old headquarters of the INA oil company because the Parliament building was damaged in the earthquake.

Zagreb - The Speaker of the Croatian Parliament, Gordan Jandroković, announced on Wednesday he would request an opinion of the Constitutional Court on "restrictions of civil liberties" imposed as part of efforts to contain the spread of the coronavirus pandemic.

Zagreb - The Croatian Parliament will hold its sessions in the historic building of INA oil company given the damage Parliament House has suffered in earthquakes this past Sunday, and its members will discuss two government bills on Wednesday.

Zagreb - The Croatian Parliament on Thursday unanimously adopted amendments to the maternity and parental allowance law which, from April 1, will increase the allowance for the second six months of the child's life.

Zagreb - The Croatian Parliament on Thursday adopted a package of government-sponsored bills valued at almost HRK 30 billion to help the economy affected by the COVID-19 outbreak, with 63 measures primarily aimed at preserving jobs and ensuring payment of wages.

Zagreb - The national civil protection authority has been given greater powers to facilitate the work of state institutions amid the coronavirus epidemic and amendments to that effect were voted in by the Parliament on Wednesday and they go into force on Thursday.

Zagreb - In order to prevent the spreading of the novel coronavirus, the Croatian Parliament will organise its plenary sessions in line with the national civil protection authority's recommendations on minimum personal distance

Zagreb - Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković said on Friday that the parliamentary leadership had reached a high degree of agreement with party groups on the need for the Parliament to continue working.

Zagreb - Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković on Thursday met with representatives of the Church and the Honorary Bleiburg Platoon about the organisation of the 75th Bleiburg commemoration in Austria.

Zagreb - Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković on Sunday sent a message with best wishes to female members of the Parliament and to female citizens of the country on International Women's Day, underscoring that Croatia will continue promoting a tolerant and equal society that provides all with equal opportunities.

Zagreb - Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković, on the margins of the two-day Inter-parliamentary Conference for the Common Foreign and Security Policy and the Common Security and Defence Policy (CFSP-CSDP), which began on Tuesday in Zagreb, called on the European Union to assume a joint response to the migrant crisis.

Zagreb - A population census will be taken in Croatia in spring 2021 under the Population Census Act which Parliament adopted on Friday after a week's delay and this morning's meeting of the ruling coalition. The census will take place from April 1 to May 7, 2021. It will be organised, coordinated and carried out by the national statistical office, for which the government has allocated HRK 177.3 million

Zagreb - Parliament on Friday adopted a law proclaiming the eastern town of Vukovar a place of special homeland respect and a law whereby the Health Ministry assumes charge of the Vukovar General County Hospital. The law proclaiming Vukovar a place of special respect was adopted by the majority vote. Its aim is to nurture the memory of what the town went through in the Homeland War as well as encourage its development.

Zagreb - The Croatian Parliament on Thursday discussed a proposal to appoint a nine-member commission for citizens' complaints against the work of the Ministry of the Interior, whose establishment was envisaged by the Police Act back in 2015.

Zagreb - The Croatian Parliament's Human Rights and Ethnic Minorities Committee on Thursday unanimously endorsed the report for 2018 by Public Ombudswoman Lora Vidović, who cited racial and ethnic discrimination, a rise in the poverty risk rate for senior citizens, growing mistrust in state institutions and emigration as the biggest challenges.

Zagreb - Deputy Parliament Speaker Željko Reiner on Tuesday and Wednesday participated in the Interparliamentary Conference on Stability, Economic Coordination and Governance in the European Union in Brussels, as part of European Parliamentary Week.

Zagreb - Zoran Milanović was sworn in as the fifth President of Croatia at a ceremony that started at noon on Tuesday in the President's Office in Zagreb. Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković said President Zoran Milanović's inauguration speech was a good start to his term, highlighting the need to cooperate with Croatia's benefit.

Zagreb - Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković on Thursday attended a meeting of national parliament speakers of the Slavkov group, which consists of Austria, the Czech Republic and Slovakia, as a representative of a country holding the presidency of the Council of the European Union. 

Zagreb - Members of Parliament on Thursday supported by a majority vote the decision of the Credentials and Privileges Commission (MIP) to terminate Milan Kujundžić's suspension of term of office as MP.

Zagreb - Chief State Prosecutor Dražen Jelenić presented in Parliament on Wednesday work reports for 2017 and 2018, saying his office (DORH) paid special attention to corruption cases but that it was difficult to expect results overnight because of numerous unfounded reports.

Zagreb - Lawmakers agreed on Thursday on the need for a broad debate on the introduction of the euro currency in Croatia and a debate in Parliament on amendments to the Law on the Croatian National Bank and on Law on Credit Institutions will contribute in that regard.

Zagreb - A parliamentary debate on the SDP-sponsored bill on medical termination of pregnancy was adjourned on Wednesday evening because the Government had not declared its stance and its representative did not show up in the Parliament chamber.

Zagreb - Croatian National Bank (HNB) Governor Boris Vujčić submitted a report on the implementation of monetary policy in 2018-2019 to Parliament on Wednesday, saying that positive economic trends continued on the labour market with increased employment and wages.

Zagreb - Croatian Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković on Tuesday received the visiting Secretary General of the Muslim World League, Muhammad bin Abdul Karim Al-Issa, and during their meeting he pointed out the role of the Islamic community in Croatia.

Zagreb - The Croatian Parliament on Friday adopted a new law on private protection and security services, also endorsed a report on the work of the Croatian Radio and Television (HRT) Programming Council in 2017 and a report on the work of the Croatian news agency HINA's steering council in 2018.

Zagreb - Croatian Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković on Wednesday received Norwegian Foreign Minister Ine Eriksen Søreide for talks on bilateral cooperation and possibilities for its advancement.

Zagreb - It is in Croatia's interest that countries in its southeast neighbourhood have a clear prospect of joining the EU, primarily because of security reasons, Croatian Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković said in Brussels on Tuesday.

Zagreb - The Croatian Parliament's Education, Science and Culture Committee on Thursday adopted a conclusion encouraging state institutions and civil society organisations to promote the working definition of antisemitism that was adopted by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA), of which Croatia is a member.

Zagreb - During a parliamentary debate on the safety and interoperability of the rail system on Friday, members of parliament warned about a poor state of the rail infrastructure, to which Transport Minister Oleg Butković said that all problems related to rail infrastructure could not be solved in a single government term.

Zagreb - The Croatian Parliament on Friday observed a minute's silence for all Holocaust victims, with Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković saying that the victims must remain in the collective memory of humankind so that those atrocities are never repeated.

Zagreb - Domagoj Ivan Milošević, Chair of the European Affairs Committee and the Committee members met the European Commissioner for Justice, Didier Reynders. As an introduction, Milošević referred to the Meeting of the Chairpersons of the Committees for the Union Affairs (COSAC) already held and outlined the most important developments of the parliamentary dimension of the Presidency.

Zagreb - Members of Parliament on Wednesday welcomed a decrease in fees domestic banks charge for cross-border payments in euros, as proposed by amendments to the law on the implementation of EU regulations relating to payment transactions.

Zagreb - Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković on Tuesday received a delegation of the German Bundestag's Committee on European Union Affairs to discuss European topics including Brexit, the Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF), and enlargement.

Zagreb – The Speaker of the Croatian Parliament Gordan Jandroković participated in the meeting of the Chairperson of the Committees for Union Affairs (COSAC).

Zagreb - Commissioner Dubravka Šuica addressed the participants during the second session of the COSAC meeting. She highlighted the importance of partnership between the European Commission and the national parliaments, achieved through political dialogue and other instruments arising from the Treaties.

Zagreb - Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković participated in the debate on the priorities of the Croatian Presidency at the meeting of the President of the Committee on Union Affairs (COSAC).

Zagreb - In his introductory address, the Chairman of the European Affairs Committee Domagoj Ivan Milošević highlighted the importance of COSAC and its contribution to the collaboration between the committees of national parliaments dealing with European Union affairs and the European Parliament.

Zagreb - Parliament on Wednesday night held a debate on an opposition motion for a no-confidence vote in Science and Education Minister Blaženka Divjak, with Prime Minister Andrej Plenković saying he would persevere in the education reform which, he added, represented a unique strategic step forward.

Zagreb - On 15 January, 28 years ago, the then member-states of the European Union recognised Croatia and on this day 22 years ago, the country completed the peaceful reintegration of its Danube region.

Zagreb – The Speaker of the Croatian Parliament Jandroković and the President of the European Commission von der Leyen discussed the main priorities of the Croatian EU Council Presidency and the programme of the parliamentary meetings that will be attended, among others, by a number of members of the European Commission.