The government forwarded to parliament amendments to the law on the special tax on salaries, pensions and other earnings, and adopted two other decisions related to the Economic Recovery Programme which Prime Minister Jadranka Kosor presented earlier this week.

"As of today, the first item on the agenda of the government's weekly session will be to consider how the programme is being implemented," said Kosor, adding she forwarded today to all ministers, as well as to all others obliged to participate in the implementation of the programme, a letter clearly defining their obligations.

She voiced confidence that, if all went according to plan, everything planned for this year could be accomplished and that obligations referring to long term measures as well as those envisaged for Croatia's accession to the European Union could also be met.

"We won't leave for tomorrow anything that we can do today," Kosor said, adding that deadlines for the implementation of the programme were being set. "They are being set. It was important to define a framework."

She said the bulk of experts had welcomed the programme, and thanked the central bank for assessing that the programme was good and feasible.

She recalled that the programme did not refer only to ministries, but also to public companies and those who must follow the government's decisions, which she said must be done consistently and through compromises.

"Since some wanted to say that the government's decisions don't concern them or that they don't honour them, we are telling them today that if they don't want to or can't (honour them), they must leave," said Kosor.

Kosor said parliament was expected to vote tomorrow on amendments to the crisis tax law which envisage rescinding the two-per cent rate on incomes between HRK 3,000 and 6,000 as of July 1 and the four-per cent rate on incomes over HRK 6,000 as of November 1.

The government adopted a conclusion on the possibility of financing investment in Croatian Railways infrastructure projects and Croatian Waters priority projects through loans with state guarantees.

The conclusion provides for increasing investment in HZ this year by more than HRK 650 million, on top of the HRK 700 million already envisaged, said Transport Minister Bozidar Kalmeta.

Regional Development Minister Bozidar Pankretic said more than 150 projects worth more than HRK 1 billion were ready for the water sector.

The government decided that all state institutions with company stock must transfer the stock to the Croatian Privatisation Fund, which would be authorised to manage said stock with a view to stepping up privatisation procedures. This refers in particular to companies in which the government has a stake of under 25 per cent, which is one of the measures from the Economic Recovery Programme, it was said.

Also today, the government forwarded to parliament a bill of amendments to the Public Roads Act, and endorsed an action plan for the implementation of a strategy aimed at improving performance in state administration.

The plan envisages investing HRK 33 million in staff education and improved performance between 2010 and 2013, said Administration Minister Davorin Mlakar.