Slovakia's parliament gave initial approval on Tuesday to dismantle the country's whistleblower protection office and replace it with a new body, a move critics say undermines anti-corruption safeguards and could inflame tensions with Brussels.

The bill, fast-tracked by Prime Minister Robert Fico's leftist-nationalist government, would abolish the Whistleblower Protection Office (UOO) and create an Office for the Protection of Victims of Crime and Whistleblowers. The government argues the UOO has been politically abused and says the new agency will better serve those "who rightfully need protection". Interior Minister Matus Sutaj Estok said on social media the changes were needed to address an "imminent threat to fundamental human rights" of crime victims and whistleblowers, and argued employers lacked rights under the current system.

Opposition parties and anti-corruption groups say the overhaul amounts to political interference. They warn it will strip protections from many whistleblowers, including state employees, and allow the government to appoint the new office's leadership. UOO chair Zuzana Dlugosova's mandate will end early under the transition. Fico's government, in power since 2023, has already weakened criminal codes for financial crime, revamped the public broadcaster and pushed constitutional changes asserting national sovereignty over some European Union laws, prompting Brussels to start proceedings against the changes.

FINAL VOTE COULD COME THIS WEEK The...

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