Transparency and corruption

It is estimated that Slovenia loses 2% of GDP due to corruption. Our score on the Corruption Perception Index is 56 (0 = highly corrupt) behind Czechia, Qatar and Botswana. The ranking is in parts due to  the weakening of our judicial system and failed reform of the 20 year old law on corruption prevention. In addition, an estimated 10% of work in the private sector is undeclared without the country having a national strategy to combat illegal employment. Government action against corruption, nepotism, clientelism, and the inflated costs of public projects remains woefully inadequate which has reduced confidence in public institutions and may significantly shift public opinion on key projects, such as the cancelled referendum on the JEK2 nuclear power plant.

Volt Slovenia proposes:

Transparency

• Introduce an asset declaration system requiring an annual declaration from high-ranking public servants and elected officials that will be made publicly available.

• Commit to transparency and openness by transitioning to the system used in Finland, Sweden and Norway to publish income and taxes paid by all citizens once per year on a national “transparency day”. Begin with the public sector and government, extend the system with a voluntary opt-in for citizens before making it mandatory for the whole population.

• Introduce a tax receipt for citizens similar to Australia, that breaks down on what paid taxes have been spent and also lists gross debt and interest payments for servicing state debt.

• Create an independent association that once per year publishes a report on waste of public funds similar to the German “Schwarzbuch der Steuerzahler” (black book)

Public Procurement

• Mandate that all public procurement tenders pass through the EJN platform. Ensure all tenders are bi-lingual to increase accessibility for European suppliers and transparency with regards to competitive pricing and public spending. Support transparent procurement through guidelines that mandate publishing details of the bidding process, criteria, and decision-making in an open data platform accessible and comprehensible to the general public.

Illegal employment

• Copy the model of Sweden and Belgium to introduce vouchers and tax reductions for household-related services from registered companies. Both countries have shown that this measure reduces illegal work by making regular work competitive. It brings unregulated workers into regular employment and has a net positive effect on the budget.

• Evolve eVEM to a single system for worker identification with simplified registration instead of multiple institutions (ZZZS, FURS). Slovenia is too small for not using a central system.

• Include fast-track seasonal work permits in the single eVEM system to ensure short-term workers cab be properly registered the day before their employment begins.

Governance

• Limit the role of politicians and individuals affiliated with politics in educational institutions, media, hospitals and similar establishments to ensure their independence from political influence.

Media Independence

• Prevent situations like in the UK or France where individuals control large parts of private classic and digital media and exert their influence to control public opinion. 

• Declare established private media companies as strategic assets similar to Poland to prevent their acquisitions by shareholders with dubious financial sources or obvious interference interest.

• Introduce the obligation to transparently publish all sources of income for all private and independent media with donations, investments and contributions above a threshold required to be named.

(version 2025-02)