The Croatian Journalists’ Association (CJA) and the Trade Union of Croatian Journalists (TUCJ) demand a retraction and an apology from Prime Minister Andrej Plenković, who at today’s Government session grossly insulted a large number of journalists by claiming that reports about social benefits increasing by 5 or 10 euros were false.
The Croatian Journalists’ Association (CJA) and the Trade Union of Croatian Journalists (TUCJ) are demanding a retraction and an apology from Prime Minister Andrej Plenković, who at today’s Government session harshly insulted a large number of journalists and media outlets by stating that “reports about increases (in social benefits, editor’s note) of 5 or 10 euros are false.”
The articles published in numerous media outlets in recent days about the amounts by which the bases for social benefits and the benefits themselves are being increased are certainly not pleasant for Prime Minister Plenković, but not because they are false. On the contrary, they are true. According to publicly available and easily verifiable proposals submitted by his Minister of Social Policy, Marin Piletić, to a two-day public consultation, proposals that the Government also adopted today at a public session, the bases are increasing by exactly those amounts: the base for the guaranteed minimum benefit is increasing by 10 euros, while the bases for other social benefits are increasing by 5 euros. Consequently, the actual amount of the guaranteed minimum benefit, which we have for decades referred to as social assistance, for a single adult is also increasing by the stated 10 euros, as the amount corresponds to 100 percent of the base. In 2026, this financial entitlement for the poorest citizens, intended to cover basic living needs, will therefore amount to 170 euros for a single adult, instead of the current 160 euros. For a child, the increase will be slightly smaller, rising from 152 euros to 161.50 euros. And that is the truth.
Prime Minister Plenković’s statement, therefore, represents a direct insult to the professional dignity of all journalists and media outlets who reported on this matter, which is why we are demanding an apology and a retraction.
Hrvoje Zovko,
President of the Croatian Journalists’ Association
Maja Sever,
President of the Trade Union of Croatian Journalists