Archive: Domestic affairs | Political parties Political parties
Controversial Prague lobbyist charged with bodily harm; may face further charges connected to wire tap scandal
Prague police have charged the controversial lobbyist Roman Janoušek with
menacing behaviour due to intoxication as well as grievous bodily harm. On
Friday, Mr Janoušek crashed his Porsche into another car in Prague 4, then
hit its driver as he attempted to flee. The news came as the construction
tycoon already found himself in the headlines due to scandal over leaked
wire taps of conversations between him and former mayor of Prague Pavel
Bém. More
Bárta trial adjourns after an ugly week
The first round of the trial of leading Public Affairs member and former
transport minister Vít Bárta comes to a close on Friday. Over the course
of the week no less than six past and present government ministers have
taken the stand to give testimony in the biggest corruption case in recent
memory, which will be adjourned on Friday while the court goes over the
evidence. More
De-facto leader of Public Affairs stands trial for corruption
The junior coalition party Public Affairs, which won seats in Parliament on
a strong-anti-corruption agenda, is facing a major test of its credibility.
The party’s de facto leader, former transport minister and present head
of the party’s parliamentary group in the lower house Vít Bárta is
standing trial on charges of corruption. The court hearings which began on
Monday will hear testimony from ministers and MPs and the outcome of the
much anticipated trial could shake the party in its foundations. More
Czechs deeply divided on EU’s fiscal union
The question whether or not the country should join the emerging EU fiscal
union has divided Czech politicians and appears to be fraught with
problems. While one governing party is in favour of an emphatic “yes”,
and the country’s eurosceptic president has already voiced an emphatic
“no”, everything points to the fact that Czechs will continue to sit on
the fence for as long as possible. More
Czech foreign minister says he’ll walk out if Czechs do not join EU fiscal union
No sooner was the government dispute over church restitutions resolved, the
Czech government is racked by a new crisis. The leader of TOP 09, Foreign
Minister Karel Schwarzenberg has made it clear that unless the Czech
Republic joins the emerging European fiscal union his party would walk out
of the coalition government. This latest ultimatum has brought to a head a
long-simmering dispute in Czech foreign policy. More
Public Affairs told to accept restitution deal or leave government
Cracks in the three-party governing coalition appeared again this week, as
the junior Public Affairs party resisted approval of a church property
restitution deal. For the senior Civic Democratic and TOP 09 parties, the
deal is a major achievement that has been years in the making. When Public
Affairs, which questions aspects of the agreement, attempted to put
conditions on its support, the response was clear: approve the deal or
leave the government. More
Czech MPs approve direct presidential election
After years of debate, the lower house of the Czech Parliament on Wednesday
voted in favour of direct presidential elections. A last-minute deal
between the coalition and the opposition Social Democrats ensured
sufficient support for the motion; if approved by the Senate, it will allow
Czechs to elect their president directly for the first time in 2013 when
Václav Klaus leaves office. More
Prague mayor wins in-party showdown to form new coalition
A dramatic week at Prague City Hall seems to be drawing to a close and the
Czech capital will be under new management. The city’s grand coalition of
the rival Civic and Social Democrats ended abruptly on Monday night, and on
Thursday morning a new ruling coalition was announced just as swiftly. The
TOP 09 party, which actually won the election to City Hall last fall but
has been in opposition ever since, will now have a majority on the council,
while the Civic Democrats and Mayor Bohuslav Svoboda will keep the top
position. Likely no one was more surprised at the outcome of this situation
than the chairman of the Civic Democratic Party’s Prague chapter, Boris
Šťastný – the man who caused the breakup of the original coalition and
who was sidestepped on the decision, which Mayor Svoboda and his supporters
arranged with TOP 09 on their own. While political commentators have
themselves been struggling to keep up with events at City Hall this week,
Jiří Pehe of New York University told us how he interprets the situation. More
Speculation surrounds fall of Prague’s grand coalition
The grand coalition of Civic and Social Democrats at Prague City Hall is
about to end, a year after it assumed power. In a surprise move, the Civic
Democrats in the capital on Tuesday announced they were leaving the ruling
bloc, justifying the step by budget and personal issues. However, the
unconvincing explanation has given rise to wide-ranging speculation about
the real reason behind the reshuffle. More
New trade minister appointment stirs controversy
President Klaus has appointed Civic Democrat Martin Kuba to head the
ministry of Trade and Industry, following the resignation of Martin
Kocourek last week. Though Mr Kocourek’s tenure ended amid allegations of
corruption, the new minister was clearly not chosen on the basis of a
controversy-free political history, as Christian Falvey reports. More
+1
+10
