In response to cases of resignations after the last local elections the government proposed changes to a law regulating the election of members of local representative bodies and decided that a councillor can resign, but in written form 24 hours before the session of a representative body at the latest.
The law gives councillors the right to withdraw their written resignation. However, if the resignation has been received by the relevant body, they will be able to do so before the start of the first session of a representative body at the latest.
In most of some 600 units of local self-government authorities were established without any problems, except for several cases of councillors handing in their resignation after deciding to join another party, said the state secretary of the Central State Office for Administration, Antun Palaric.
This caused a number of problems, with some councillors claiming that they had not signed their resignation or with some resignations having been handed in at the time a councillor's mandate was frozen, Palaric said, dismissing accusations that the Central State Office for Administration was unprincipled.
"There are a few cases where facts need to be established, and we are waiting for the police and the State Prosecution to do their job so that we can make decisions," he added.
The government today also instructed all ministries and bodies of state administration to include social partners - trade unions and employers - in the drawing up of legislation, strategies and other regulations.
Deputy PM Jadranka Kosor announced for Friday a meeting with unions of civil servants to discuss a new law on salaries.