Speaking to the press, Karamarko said the government was not interested in anyone's opinion and that it would be disastrous for Croatia if it completed its term in office.

He said there was no answer as to how the national economy would react to Croatia's EU accession, scheduled for July 1, and that the incumbent government was not preparing for that. He added that Croats would not start living better immediately upon accession.

New possibilities will open up and the question is, how much Croatia will be able to utilise them, Karamarko said, adding that the incumbent government's activity suggested that the standard of living would continued to decline.

Asked to comment on the performance of the government's coordinating body for the economy, investments and EU funds, Karamarko said he did not expect much after 17 months without results.

Recalling that EUR 7 million was invested in Croatia from abroad in the first quarter of the year, he said this was "indeed nothing". He said the government had lost both confidence and credibility among politicians, the public, unions and various structures. "They are in conflict with them and are ultimately arguing amongst themselves because they don't know how to solve the problems."

Asked to comment on the poor turnout at a golf referendum in Dubrovnik yesterday, Karamarko said people were tired of "tilting at windmills which don't bring results" and that they were only interested in new jobs. He said this was a "message that people want sound investments."