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Press ReviewPress Review
One face features on the front pages of all the Czech papers today,
Sweden's murdered Foreign Minister Anna Lindh. Mrs Lindh's killing has
provoked questions about security for politicians not only in Sweden, but
throughout Europe. Also making headlines today - the Pope's visit to
Slovakia, and a rebellion in the upper house in parliament over the
government's public finance reforms.
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Current AffairsTrade unionists to stage protest against government's public finance reform
The government-proposed package of public finance reforms is in the focus
of attention again. While economists and businessmen say the reforms are
not radical enough and will do little to boost the economy, trade
unionists say the measures will affect the country's poorest. And that's
why members of the country's two largest trade union associations will
converge on Prague on Saturday to stage a massive protest against the
reforms.
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Business NewsBusiness News
Trade Unions have been stepping up their protests against fiscal reforms
planned by the government. Central Bank governor has encouraged the
cabinet to go ahead with the reforms. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Finance
said the Czech Republic will show the biggest fiscal deficit in its
history this year. The dominant Czech telephone operator, Czech Telecom,
will lay off 1,800 workers by the end of the year. The Czech foreign trade
balance fell into a higher than expected deficit in July. Every tenth
Czech household defaults on its loans.
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Press ReviewPress Review
The first ever trial of a left-wing radical commands a great deal of
attention since a regional court in North Moravia is now expected to set
an important precedent - can people be jailed for propagating communism?
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Letter from PragueSummer's getting hot
It's been an extremely hot summer here in the Czech Republic. Well, the
older generation would say just another hot summer - only young skeptics
talk about a possible climate change. Many enjoy the amount of sun we've
been having, but for others, it is yet another reason to complain about
their plight - such as farmers who never fail to be surprised by the
seasonal changes in the weather, and are always demanding compensations
from the government for what other entrepreneurs have to take as business
risk. Nevertheless, the farmers only add to the countless hands stretched
towards the treasury.
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Press ReviewPress Review
"Prime Minister Spidla wins first battle", that's how today's
papers describe the approval of a package of government-proposed public
finance reforms by the Lower House. The cabinet has pegged its future on
parliamentary approval of the reforms. But, as the papers point out, this
was only the first out of three readings.
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Business NewsUncertain future of fiscal reforms weakens Czech koruna
This week, Czech lawmakers started debating a package of fiscal reforms as
proposed by the centre-left government of Prime Minister Vladimir Spidla.
Mr. Spidla has staked the future of his three-party coalition cabinet on
the success of the reforms which are vital for cutting a widening public
finance deficit to meet the Maastricht criteria for euro adoption.
However, the government has only the tiniest majority of one vote in the
Lower Chamber. Some coalition MP have already voiced their objections to
the shape of the reforms and suggested they may seek alterations to some
of the dozen or so bills, combining tax hikes with wage freeze in the
state sector and cuts in social welfare. Although the reform has been
criticised from both right and left for being either too mild or too
radical, pundits agree that it is a step in the right direction. However,
the uncertain future of the reform package and fears of potential collapse
of the government has had a negative impact on the Czech currency, which
fell to 32.40 to the euro, its weakest level in a year and a half. I
discussed this and other aspects of the current uncertain situation with
economic analyst Vladimir Pikora from the Prague branch of Volksbank.
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Current AffairsOpposition Civic Democrats will strive to bring down government
The strongest opposition party in Parliament, the centre right Civic
Democrats have declared their intention to try to bring down the
three-party coalition government and trigger early elections. The public
announcement made by the party's leader Miroslav Topolanek, comes in the
wake of a fresh blow for the governing coalition: one of its deputies
broke ranks on Tuesday, seriously endangering the government's razor thin
majority in the Lower House.
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Press ReviewPress Review
Two stories dominate Wednesday's front pages: the killing of Saddam
Hussein's two sons by United States forces in Iraq, and the threat to the
governing coalition posed by the surprise resignation of Josef Hojdar from
the Social Democrats' group in the Chamber of Deputies.
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