Schwarzenberg regrets environment ministry falling into hands of Civic Democrats and ČEZ

Incoming foreign minister and TOP 09 chairman Karel Schwarzenberg has expressed regret that the Ministry of the Environment is to be run by the Civic Democratic party in the new coalition government. In an interview for the daily Lidové Noviny Mr Schwarzenberg said that he had the impression that the ministry would be a mere husk, run by representatives of the energy giant ČEZ. The new environmental minister is to be Civic Democrat Pavel Drobil, who has no experience working in ecological issues. Mr Schwarzenberg said that his party’s pick for the post had been ecology professor and senator Bedřich Moldan, but that the Civic Democrats had rejected him because they did not want a responsible ministry. The Czech Republic, he said, is “simply the property of ČEZ”.