Turbulent parliamentary session before a vote of no confidence in the Slovak government

These are stormy times in Slovakia: Since Robert Fico became Prime Minister for the fourth time in October 2023, the government and opposition have not been on good terms with each other. It is therefore not surprising that the latter submitted a motion of no confidence in Parliament on Tuesday. However, there has recently been a clash in the coalition between Fico’s populist party Smer (Direction) with the left-wing Hlas (Voice) and the right-wing populist Slovak National Party (SNS). And because the coalition only has a majority of 76 of the 150 seats in parliament, a vote of confidence automatically becomes a dicey affair.