The council was deciding between Furlan, who was put forward by outgoing Justice Minister Aleš Zalar, and District State Prosecutor Blanka Žgajnar, who is temporarily heading the new prosecution service.

Zalar was advised to propose Furlan by State Prosecutor General Zvonko Fišer.

Before heading the NBI, Furlan headed a prosecutor task force for organised crime between 2004 and 2008. He resigned from the post early due to a dispute with former State Prosecutor General Barbara Brezigar.

Furlan was appointed for a period of six years with the possibility of an extension, however, it remains unclear when he will assume his new position.

The head of the specialist state prosecution service is appointed by the State Prosecution Council at the proposal of justice minister, who must consult with the state prosecutor general on the candidate beforehand.

The council is however not obligated to appoint the proposed candidate.

The call for applications was open between 11 November and 12 December.

Furlan wrote in a press release responding to the appointment that he hoped for good cooperation with all state prosecutors and the police.

He also expressed hope that the selection procedures will start soon for the rest of the service's staff, which he sees as one of his hardest tasks in the beginning.

According to the General Police Administration, Police Commissioner Janko Goršek will now need to start the procedures for the appointment of a new NBI chief, who will also have a six-year term with the possibility of one extension.

The Justice Ministry welcomed Furlan's appointment by saying it paved the way for the appointment of the remaining ten state prosecutors who will be dealing with toughest cases of organised crime. "Thus the prosecution service will be able to start functioning with all of its 21 prosecutors," the ministry said.

According to the ministry, this concludes an "important part of the reform of the criminal justice system".

Žgajnar said in her response that she was not at all surprised by the appointment, as she believes the decision was clear from the start with the legislation changes that introduce the specialised service.

She added that she was considering an appeal against the appointment, but that she would wait until she receives an explanation of the decision.

The Democrats (SDS), the biggest party in the incoming centre-right coalition, have criticised Zalar for putting forward a candidate, saying that he had overstepped his duties as outgoing minister and that the appointment should be made by a minister with full powers.

Zalar responded that his duties as outgoing minister included "all those issues that must be decided on within a term fixed by law".

The district state prosecution service dealing with the toughest cases of organised crime was introduced as the twelfth state prosecution service by the state prosecutor act, which entered into force at the beginning of November.