Prior to the meeting, Cerar said he expected an informal conversation. Regarding the move of the Slovenian Democratic Party (SDS), which has abated its viewpoint about its cooperation in the parliament, he stated he still thought this was a sign of political immaturity, and that he hoped the party would realise this was not the way state politics should be built upon. In relation to the decision made by the outgoing prime minister Bratušek that her government would appoint the new Slovenian European commissioner, Cerar commented this was “not a good thing”. He pointed out that previous governments should have established a formal legal procedure for the appointment. He believes it would be appropriate for the parliament to pass an act through an urgent procedure, perhaps even immediately, where the procedure for the selection of the candidate would be defined in a few articles.
What the new coalition will be like, should become clear around 1 August, when the first rough lines are expected to be drawn, reported Tomaž Celestina for Radio Slovenija. According to Cerar, the negotiations could start in the coming days, and optimistic predictions place the formation of the government as early as September. The parties have also started preparing their starting points for negotiations, although they’re in a relatively weak position due to the numbers of their MPs, which are much lower in comparison to Cerar’s party.
Pahor has urged Slovenian politics to create an atmosphere of cooperation by joining the forces in working for the common good. He believes it would be very bad for the country if part of the MPs blocked the work of the parliament.
The president of the republic is also the one who proposes the candidate for the formateur of the new government to the parliament. He is required to send in the proposal in 30 days following the parliament’s founding session. The latter is expected to take place on 1 August, although the date has not been set officially yet. The first opportunity to form a government is given to the candidate from the party that won the elections.