Prime Minister Miro Cerar told the press at Brdo pri Kranju that science was the engine of development and that the government would try to secure additional funds for the sector this year already.

The second priority is healthcare, which is why funding will be increased for the Health Ministry, which should continue with reforms and shorten waiting lines among other things.

An additional EUR 18m will for instance be secured next year to tackle the waiting lines and for performance bonuses in healthcare, while the total increase in funding for healthcare services is EUR 58m.

Cerar mover highlighted security, noting the situation in the Slovenian Armed Forces had deteriorated significantly.

"For the sake of our own safety as well as due to other factors, such as our membership in NATO, we are securing additional funds for the army," he said, explaining he expected the bulk would go for development, modernisation and the country's direct defence capabilities.

Extra funding is also being secured for the police force, while Cerar moreover mentioned infrastructure as a priority, highlighting the planned upgrade of the rail track to the Koper port.

"The budget is balanced, all sectors got enough to execute the key projects," the prime minister said.

The government, which announced a raising of the ceiling budget expenditure by EUR 50m, plans EUR 9.625bn in expenditure in 2018 and EUR 9.697bn in 2019.

"This allows us to stay on the path of a gradual balancing of public finances and to honour the commitment regarding the mid-term fiscal goal," Finance Minister Mateja Vraničar Erman said.