Reform deal stalled in Slovenia

Slovenia's centre-left coalition on Sunday failed to reach a deal with the opposition over constitutional changes aimed at ensuring the implementation of much-needed fiscal reforms. Prime Minister Alenka Bratusek said after meeting with parliamentary party leaders that a session set for Monday aimed at changing referendum rules had been postponed. She added that the coalition also proposed a postponement of debate on controversial tax reforms that had been set for Tuesday. The centre-right Slovenian Democratic Party (SDS) of former prime minister Janez Jansa wants a vote on the so-called golden rule, which would require Slovenia to balance its budget by 2015. The ruling coalition says this deadline is not realistic and suggests that it be moved to 2017. After only six weeks in power, Bratusek has until Thursday to send to Brussels a road map for dealing with a banking crisis and fixing public finances amid a deep recession. All parliamentary parties agree that the constitution should be changed to prevent the use of referendums to block reform bills. The constitution can be amended only by a two-thirds majority.