Slovenia's parliament endorsed the ministerial line-up proposed by Prime Minister Borut Pahor in a 56 to 30 vote on Friday evening, the official Slovenian news agency STA reported.
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| Slovenian outgoing Prime Minister Janez Jansa (R) shakes hands with new Prime Minister Borut Pahor immediately after Slovenian Parliament confirmed Pahor's new government in Ljubljana on November 21, 2008. Pahor, whose centre-left party took 30.45 percent of the vote in September, winning 29 of the 90 seats in parliament, is Slovenia's fifth prime minister since the former Yugoslav republic declared independence in 1991. [AFP PHOTO] |
The 18-member cabinet, which includes five women, was sworn in and is expected to hold the first meeting Saturday to adopt further measures to tackle the economic crisis, said the reports.
In a conciliatory speech to parliament, Pahor said that this would formally be a coalition government, but it would in fact be "a government of all people."
"The government understands that this time of uncertainty requires consensus," he said.
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| New Slovenian Prime Minister Borut Pahor listens to a parliamentary session discussion about new government in Ljubljana on November 21, 2008.[AFP PHOTO] |
Pahor's leftist Social Democrats won 29 seats in the Sept. 21 general election, narrowly defeating former Prime Minister Janez Jansa's center-right Slovenian Democrats.
Pahor, 45, formed a ruling coalition with Zares, Liberal Democrats and Pensioners' Party. The four-party coalition has 50 seats in the 90-member parliament.
Pahor thanked the previous cabinet, led by Janez Jansa, for the work it had done in the past four years, saying this allowed Slovenia to "head into the future better prepared than we would be if the government had not taken certain strategic measures."
(Xinhua News Agency November 22, 2008)