ZAGREB, April 11, 2018 – Prime Minister Andrej Plenković said during Question Time in Parliament on Wednesday that information on the future structure of the Agrokor food and retail conglomerate, its corporate management and detailed ownership structure would be known in the next three months.
Plenković said this after Croatian Peasant Party (HSS) president Krešo Beljak recalled that the law on emergency administration in systemic companies had been adopted a year ago, including a list of companies of systemic importance, headed by Agrokor. Beljak wondered if this meant that now, given that Agrokor’s majority owner was a Russian state bank and its headquarters would move to the Netherlands, the company would be removed from the list of systemic companies.
“You are aware that financial creditors have practically determined the ownership and they are there neither because I wanted it nor because you wanted it. They are there because, before the activation of the law, they had lent money to the then management and owner for the then management’s projects and activities,” said Plenković. He reiterated that the government was very much satisfied with the agreement reached by Agrokor’s emergency administration and creditors on a debt settlement plan.
MP Kažimir Varda of the BM 365 party wanted to know about the coming pension reform. Labour and Pension System Minister Marko Pavić said that under the law adopted in 2014, Croatians would retire at 67, but added that those who entered the labour market early in their life already had the right to retire before 67. “We will keep the institute of so-called pensions for long years of service,” he said, adding that this referred to workers such as cashiers and construction workers.
He noted that the national pension system was sustainable and that of the kuna 39 billion allocated from the budget for pensions, only 56% came from pension contributions. “Only 20% of Croatian pensioners have 40 years of service. The reform is aimed at ensuring sustainability. Most of the reform will refer to future pensioners, but also to current pensioners in terms of their inclusion in the labour market. This year we plan to set aside 1.4 billion kuna for an increase in pensions based on the ‘Swiss formula’ and we are aware that that is little,” said Pavić.
The reform, which starts on 1 January 1, 2019, will not be to the detriment of any pensioner category, in 2020 a national pension will be introduced for those with up to 15 years of service and an accelerated pension scheme for certain professions will not be cancelled, the minister said.
In the next two to three years, the Construction Ministry will have to invest around 150 million kuna to rehabilitate landslides, Minister Predrag Štromar said when HNS MP Marija Puh warned about the large number of landslides, notably in the north of the country, that jeopardised buildings and roads. Štromar said his ministry had secured 10 million kuna this year for the repair of roads damaged by landslides.
Science and Education Minister Blaženka Divjak said that she could guarantee that everything would be ready for the experimental phase of the education reform to start this autumn. The experimental stage will cover 72 schools – 46 primary and 26 high schools – and involve 1,500 teachers, teaching assistants and 8,500 students, she said.
Answering a question by HNS MP Bernarda Topolko, Divjak said that schools that had not applied for the experimental stage of the reform would be able to join in as well.
