Bitola driver at 3.50 per mille, a budget revision without investment, Article 13 deleted and unpaid VAT

A Bitola driver, 3.50 per mille and detention only after the second drive

On the evening of 7 November, a 29-year-old from Bitola was stopped behind the wheel of a "Mercedes" with 3.23 per mille of alcohol in his blood. On 9 November, at 02:41, the 29-year-old was stopped again, this time at 3.50. Less than 30 hours passed between the two checks, and he was given eight days of detention only after the second arrest. The police statements don't say whether his licence or his car were taken after the first arrest. That's the question left hanging: what does "deprived of liberty" mean if a day later the man is driving through Bitola again?

A budget revision that cuts investment, VAT that doesn't arrive on time

Parliament passed the second revision of the 2026 budget, just two months after the first. Capital spending, according to the Fiscal Council, drops from around 46.5 to 40.1 billion denars, while the deficit stays at 46.3 billion denars. In July, the higher deficit was justified by the need for more investment. Now investment is smaller and the deficit hasn't budged. The Fiscal Council warns that part of the borrowing will now fund current spending.

On the other side of the till, the Public Revenue Office announced that of 5.578 billion denars in VAT declared for October, only 2.542 billion was paid on time, or 45.6 percent. This isn't debt uncovered by an audit, it's VAT the companies declared themselves. For September, social contributions went unpaid for 72,037 employees. The state cuts development to plug the holes, while companies file neatly and pay whenever they get around to it.

Article 13 deleted, the "four-eyes" procurement stays

After a veto by President Gordana Siljanovska-Davkova, the majority deleted Article 13 from the amendments to the Public Procurement Law, the one that allowed commission members to be reappointed with no clear limit. Everything else the opposition warned about stayed in: the ceiling for purchases without a tender rises from 5,000 to 10,000 euros, the Bureau's approval for contracts without a public call is scrapped, and the fee for filing a complaint jumps to 150-600 euros. The president drew one line, and the government respected exactly that one line.

Meanwhile, the draft of the new Criminal Code went to Brussels for an opinion. Seven years of preparation and 33 EU directives, and the public still has no idea what the text says. The European Commission reads it first, and only then the citizens.

"Safe City": 10 million a year and the minister's word

Interior Minister Pance Toskovski spent almost an hour talking about the "Safe City" traffic camera system and insisted that ministers and officials pay their fines too. He didn't name a single one, nor did he say how many official vehicles were fined. According to initial estimates, the system brings in around 10 million euros a year, and from December it expands to Strumica and Stip, from February to Bitola as well. If there's no difference between an official and an ordinary driver, why aren't the numbers for officials published the way everyone else's offences are?

Violence against women in Urvich and Bogdanci

In the village of Urvich near Tetovo, 25-year-old G.J. physically attacked the 50-year-old woman from Kosovo who was caring for his sick mother. The attack happened on 14 June, and the criminal complaint for violence was only made public now, in November. Almost five months for a case with a known victim and a known attacker.

In Bogdanci, on 7 November, 34-year-old I.S. attempted to rape a 22-year-old woman. The suspect was arrested and ordered into eight days of detention. It happened just four days after a 17-year-old girl was found murdered near Bogdanci. This time the institutions reacted fast. Why did it take them months in Urvich?

Skopje: a chimney register, a megapark "soon" and clothing bins

The City of Skopje and UNDP presented the draft air quality plan for 2027-2031. The novelty is a chimney register, a digital record of every source of pollution. The rest is familiar from every Skopje winter: district heating, an end to wood-burning stoves, 100 electric buses, a low-emission zone. Critics point out it's unclear which institution will monitor implementation, and for funding there are only proposals.

Mayor Orce Gjorgjievski, meanwhile, announced that the 86,000-square-metre megapark in Karpos will "soon" be complete. The design competition was launched in 2020, the first phase was declared finished in December 2024, and Gjorgjievski is the third mayor to announce the park.

Some concrete news comes from the Centar municipality: it is installing 20 bins for old clothes in front of schools and kindergartens, and the first one already stands in front of the "Kole Nedelkovski" primary school. A bin, a location and a company that empties it. You rarely see a green announcement this clear.

Struga and small businesses: debts and rulebooks

Struga's mayor Mendi Kjura said the municipality has paid back more than 2.5 million euros of debt, yet the municipality's account is still frozen. The debts have been piling up since 2007, mostly from expropriations, and Kjura promises to clear them by the end of the year.

Accountants, meanwhile, are asking for separate rules for small businesses. The new bookkeeping rulebook runs to 1,200 pages, and a small company fills in almost the same reports as a corporation.

In the world: drones over Lithuania, Hegseth sent to committee

Unidentified drones entered the airspace of Lithuania and Latvia, Kaunas airport suspended flights and residents were told to seek shelter. NATO scrambled fighter jets. In Washington, the attempt to impeach Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, accused of waging war in Iran without Congress's approval, ended up in a committee by 211 votes to 204. Croatian President Zoran Milanovic, meanwhile, calculated that Serbia grew as fast as Croatia, and without the European funds.

Sport: Chalkida, NMKD and 720 minutes without a goal

The handball team lost 29:24 to Greece in Chalkida, with goalkeeper Tomovski and his 11 saves the bright spot. Greek TV rounded off the evening with an on-screen graphic labelling the country "NMKD", and the federation announced a complaint to the EHF. The football team, meanwhile, heads to Glasgow with 720 minutes without a goal and is after something very modest: a single goal.

In the heavier part of the day, the fixes arrive late: detention after the second drunk drive, an article deleted after a veto, a criminal complaint five months after the attack, a second budget revision in two months. The institutions do react, just rarely on the first call.