The decision to scrap the Council for State Service is one of the measures aimed at contributing to the consolidation of public finances, the Government Office announced on Thursday. It underlined that the state administration supervisory mechanism won't be done away with once the council is scrapped, but rather optimized. According to the Office, this measure would save the state coffers an estimated €655,000 annually.
The coalition is also looking at other state institutions. Junior coalition member SNS leader Andrej Danko thinks that there are too many authorities in Slovakia. He therefore proposes to merge the Antimonopoly Office and the Office for Public Procurement.
“I think, Czechia shows a good example. There is the Office for the protection of competition. Both of our authorities can be merged into one such institution. I expect combining activities and more efficient work,” says Danko.
While the Antimonopoly Office protects competition from cartel agreements, for example, the Office for Public Procurement monitors and evaluates state and public tenders. They currently operate independently of each other.
The Deputy Speaker of Parliament says that this proposal is still being discussed in the coalition and is not a final idea. Robert Puci, chairman of the Hlas SD and head of the economic committee, has not heard of it yet.
“It might be a good idea but I think that the activities of the offices should be evaluated by the governmental bodies,” stated Puci.
Opposition MP Julíus Jakab from the Slovakia Movement thinks that this may have an impact on the use of EU funds.
“The establishment of the Civil Service Council was a condition for us to be able to draw on EU funds. I wonder whether the current Government has negotiated with the EC that it can take such a firm approach to the Civil Service Council and abolish it, or whether the current Government is putting the use of the EU funds at risk again,” thinks Jakab.
SNS rejects that it is putting EU funds at risk. Slovakia already has one of the most politicised state administrations, says Katarína Staroňová from the Institute of Public Policy at Comenius University, she would expect the council's competences to be strengthened rather than abolished.
The discussion about the role of the Council is welcome. But it should be an expert debate based on data and information and not in the form of an amendment.
RTVS
