PA MATTERS
Our Work
A selection of public affairs projects we have delivered for clients in Slovakia and the Czech Republic. Results are described only where they are already public, or where the client has agreed to share them.
LOWER VAT FOR GASTRONOMY – #STÁLEMÁMECHUŤ
Client: Slovak Association of Beer and Malt Producers (SZVPS)
The brewing sector needed the VAT rate for restaurants and pubs cut from 20% to 10% without an increase in excise duty. We built the #stálemámechuť platform, which united the fragmented HORECA sector behind one voice, prepared the economic argument base with evidence from neighbouring member states, and took the case to the Ministries of Finance, Economy and Transport, to MPs and to the public through stakeholder meetings, press conferences and online debates. On 5 December 2022 the National Council approved a permanent 10% VAT rate for catering services, in force since 1 February 2023. The campaign won gold at Zlatý středník 2023 (crisis communication, change communication and public affairs), silver in the gastronomy category, was a SABRE Awards EMEA 2023 finalist and was shortlisted at PROKOP 2022.
VACCINATION AT THE WORKPLACE
Client: Ministry of Health of the Slovak Republic
At the height of the pandemic, every step the Ministry took on COVID-19 vaccination was under scrutiny, and uptake among employees of large companies was lagging. PA Matters brought the Ministry together with employer associations and chambers of commerce in a joint working group, ran the pilot phase and wrote the procedures the rest of the market then followed. Fifty-six large employers took part: 7,272 people were vaccinated directly at their workplace, with capacity for up to 15,000, while a further 40 companies used the mobile vaccination service, 11 booked slots in large-capacity centres and five vaccinated in their own medical facilities. The project took third place at PROKOP 2021 in the public affairs category and was a SABRE Awards EMEA 2022 finalist (Government Agencies).
VOLVO CARS – ANNOUNCING THE SLOVAK INVESTMENT
Client: Volvo Cars
When Volvo Cars signed its investment agreement for a new plant at Valaliky near Košice, the announcement had to run simultaneously in Bratislava and at the industrial park, with the Volvo Cars CEO joining the ceremonial signing by video link. PA Matters set the communication strategy with the client, coordinated with the Government Office and the Ministries of Economy and Finance, helped shape the key messages and press release, and handled distribution and media relations on the day.
FOOD-DELIVERY COURIERS – REMOVING THE CERTIFICATE BARRIER
Client: Bolt Food
Every food-delivery courier in Slovakia had to obtain a food-handling certificate. The course took around two months, cost money and had a pass rate of about 80%, and during the pandemic the wait for an exam slot reached four months, for work that most couriers, many of them students, do part-time. PA Matters made the case to the Public Health Authority, the ministries of health and economy and to MPs that responsibility for food safety should sit with the platform, which trains its couriers, rather than with each courier individually. The Public Health Authority changed its approach and the Public Health Act was amended: Act No. 356/2024, in force since 17 December 2024, exempts people who transport packaged food and meals from the certificate requirement.
DUAL FOOD QUALITY – BRINGING THE DEBATE BACK TO THE LAW
Client: Coca-Cola HBC
In 2024 the "dual quality" of food returned to the top of the Slovak political agenda, with cross-border sample testing and a new consumer-protection law, in force from July 2024, that left room for very broad interpretation. Producers and retailers faced the risk of sanctions based on contested testing methods, and serious reputational damage. PA Matters identified the procedural weaknesses in the testing and the interpretation risks of the new law, brought in the expertise of the branded-goods producers' association and coordinated with partners at home and abroad. Together we moved the debate from political statements to EU law and legal certainty. By early 2025 the issue had calmed down before it reached the stage of sanctions against producers and retailers.
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