Archive: Domestic affairs | Politics Politics
Ex-US ambassador accuses high-ranking Czech government official of corruption
Former US ambassador to the Czech Republic William Cabaniss has accused
Czech ex-deputy defence minister Martin Barták of soliciting a bribe. The
daily Mladá fronta Dnes quoted Mr Cabaniss on Friday as saying that in
2008, Mr Barták asked for “millions of dollars” for his assistance in
solving problems the Czech truck maker Tatra had with a commission for the
Czech army. Mr Barták, who now serves as deputy finance minister, has
denied any wrongdoing. More
Senate approves government’s austerity bills
The Czech Senate met for the final session in its present formation on
Friday with one all-important item on the agenda: approving the
government’s austerity measures before the Civic Democrats lose their
majority in the wake of recent elections for one third of the seats in the
upper house. The opposition Social Democrats say the fast-tracked vote was
unconstitutional, while a group of protesters briefly held up proceedings
by blocking the Senate’s entrance. More
Solar power companies, lawyers predict fight back against government measures to snuff out photovoltaic power boom
Czech lawmakers have taken a big step to put a lid on the country’s solar
power boom. The lower house has voted through a package of taxes hitting
solar companies and power producers to curb electricity price rises next
year. More
Czech trade unions call one-day strike against cuts in public sector salaries
Czech trades unions have called a one-day strike next month in protest
against a government plan to cut the salaries of public sector employees.
Over half a million people are expected to take part in the strike, the
biggest such protest since the fall of communism. For its part, the Czech
government has reiterated a pledge not to back down. More
Can citizen power change the face of Czech town halls?
One of the most startling features of recent elections in big cities, towns
and local councils across the Czech Republic was the success of independent
citizens’ groups in winning seats. Many campaigned on a simple ticket of
throwing the incumbent big parties or coalitions, often tarnished with
mismanagement or corruption, out of power. So do those elections mark a
radical change or just a blip and is there any reason to hope that the
blight of local government corruption can be conquered? In this week’s
Talking Point we look at the phenomenon and chances of a Czech
anti-corruption drive.
More
Opposition’s victory in senate elections may slow government’s reform drive
The opposition Social Democrats triumphed in the weekend senate elections
winning a majority in the upper house of Parliament and pledging to use the
power to slow down the government’s reform drive. The vote is seen as the
first real test of public support for the government’s far-reaching
austerity plans. More
Senate results should spark reflection from government parties, force negotiations with Social Democrats: political analyst Jiří Pehe
Political analyst Jiří Pehe says the Senate election results represent a
backlash against the centre-right coalition government’s reforms. He
expects the outcome to make political parties and the government think
again about their next moves and, whatever the constitutional weakness of
the Senate, force them to consult with the majority party in the upper
house, the Social Democrats. We asked him whether the results came in as he
expected. More
Opposition senate win would pose major threat to coalition budget plans
Major budget cuts are a mainstay of the coalition government’s platform
but there is one post-election scenario that could present a major problem
for them. The left-wing opposition Social Democrats hope to win at least 12
of the 27 Senate seats being contested in elections this and next weekend.
If that happens, the party would gain a majority in the upper house – and
make it very hard for the coalition to meet its planned budget deficit for
next year. More
Government’s advisory board proposes makeover of public procurement
The Czech government’s economic advisory council, known as NERV, has come
up with a set of measures to curb wide-spread corruption in public
procurement. The council proposes, among other things, to simplify the
procurement process and to make it more transparent. Criteria for companies
taking part in public tenders should be limited to ensure greater
competition. The state should also make sure that all public procurement
projects are essentially needed. Radio Prague spoke to economist and NERV
member Pavel Kohout, about the proposed changes.
More
Assessing the first hundred days of Petr Nečas
Petr Nečas has now been Czech prime minister for 100 days, a milestone in
any leader’s career. He became chairman of the Civic Democratic Party
just as campaigning for parliamentary elections was getting underway, and
soon after voting at the end of May found himself head of a three-party
right-of-centre coalition. But what kind of prime minister has Mr Nečas
been so far? Radio Prague has been gauging opinion. More
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