"I am sorry, but we have set certain standards of conduct which we will stick to. What happened is indisputable - a minister intervened for a person who has ties with the party; we don't do that, we don't allow that and unfortunately this is the price," Milanovic told a news conference in the government headquarters, organised following yesterday's resignation by Minister Holy. The minister resigned after an email was leaked to the public in which Minister Holy asked Croatian Railways Managing Board president Rene Valcic not to fire the wife of their party colleague.

PM Milanovic said a new environmental protection minister would be appointed soon and the public would be informed about it immediately.

Milanovic declined to comment on Holy's suspicions that she was being spied on and that there was a parallel structure which broke into her email account.

Asked to comment on the fact that Zvonko Ercegovac, whose brother has a contract with the power company HEP, was appointed member of the HEP Managing Board, Milanovic said he was not aware of this case.

"But if you know something about it, I encourage you to investigate and monitor if the company in question is still working with this state-owned company, what kind of contracts it is getting and under what condition," Milanovic said adding that he was interested in the competence of candidates for the position of a managing board member.

Milanovic also commented on the Gay Pride march scheduled to take place in the coastal city of Split on Saturday, stressing that several members of his government would attend the event.

"I call on all those who think differently to show a minimum level of civilised behaviour and if they are bothered by the march, to turn their heads the other way, respect the rights of others to public assembly and refrain from violence," the PM said.