The legislation was drawn up by a group of 46 mostly leftist and centrist members of parliament from six of the nine parties in the lower house, including the populist ANO party of billionaire Prime Minister Andrej Babis. However, at the same time, 37 lawmakers introduced a rival bill calling on marriage to be constitutionally defined as between one man and one woman. Thankfully, as it’s calling for a constitutional change it’s far less likely to succeed than the bill calling for same-sex marriages to be legalized. In the Czech political system, a constitutional change requires 60% of the Czech parliament to vote in favor. Meanwhile, a bill that is only seeking to change the law just requires a normal majority vote. In a poll conducted in May, 50 percent of respondents supported gay marriage. Seventy-four percent approved of the existing registered partnership option. Babis’s centrist ANO party won that vote by a large margin and formed a minority government, but he failed to secure parliamentary support. He is now trying to form a new cabinet with the center-left Social Democrats that would also need the backing of the Communist party. Author: red
The first quadruplets in 15 years were born in Prague last week, at the maternity hospital of Motol. The three girls and a boy – named Anežka, Monika, Klára, and Ondřej are reportedly doing well, informed the hospital today. Anežka (1400g) and Monika (1530g) were born first, Klára (1450g) and Ondřej (1660g) were born next. “The birth of a child is always a special life event. The birth of quadruplets is a truly miraculous event,” said the director of Motol hospital. The quadruplets are the 22nd to have been born in this country since 1950. The number of multiple births has been decreasing in the Czech Republic in the past few years and last year, 1630 twins and triplets were born in a country with 10.5 million inhabitants, according to a demographic booklet of the Czech Statistical Office. In the past 25 years, the highest number of triplets was born in 1997 (35), and the highest twin rate was in 2010 (2446). Author: red
Apple Pay has launched in three more countries in the last month or so, and a local site suggests that the Czech Republic may be joining the list within the next couple of months SmartMania cites sources saying that it’s coming to Moneta Money Bank soon, with a planned launch date sometime in August. According to information available to our editorial staff, Apple Pay will offer Moneta Money Bank support to its clients. Indeed, in February, the bank issued a paper for investors which revealed a mention of the launch of Apple Pay in the Czech Republic. If everything goes according to plan, the service could start in August this year. There is also speculation that the platform may be supported by Revolut thanks to a vague tweet this week. You can already use Apple Pay to pay money into the service, but you can’t yet use it for spending. The company said back in April that it would be ‘a matter of months.’ Apple Pay uses the near-field communication (NFC) chips embedded in your smartphone to pay for goods and services by holding the device near a card reader, as you would a contactless debit card. You can also use Apple Pay to make single touch purchases within apps....
It started about 20 years ago with just a few dozen fans of the of the JRR Tolkien book The Hobbit meeting in a forest in the Czech Republic and acting out some of the famous battle scenes from the fantasy novel. Now, two decades later it draws hundreds of would-be Orcs, Elves, Rangers, and Dwarves from across Europe. More than 1,000 people, dressed in costumes from Tolkien’s books, took part in the Battle of the Five Armies, according to organizers of the annual event, held in a forest near the Czech town of Doksy, 80km north of Prague. The weapons are foam or plastic tipped so there aren’t many injuries, but a player will fall occasionally after a particularly hard hit. Although inspired by well-known stories from Middle-earth, the results of battles at the event are not predetermined, and on several occasions, the evil side has actually won. “We come here to enjoy a great battle, great atmosphere, have a little fight and to meet people one sees only once a year,” said Lucie Zavadilova, attending the battle for the sixth time. Author: red
Říčany currently ranks as the city with the best quality of life in the Czech Republic, according to Deloitte, which uses data from users to evaluate various aspects of life in Czech cities. The project is called “Obce v date”. Deloitte claims to analyze data from the 206 largest Czech cities and uses the following criteria to evaluate cities’ quality of life: Cost of living and purchasing power Affordability of housing Pollution including air, water, etc. Crime rates· Health system quality Traffic (commute times) Number of doctors employed Unemployment rate Average salary On the second place ranks Prague, the third – Černošice. On the contrary, towns from the Moravian-Silesian and Ústecký Regions occupied the lowest places. “Many people in these regions have to deal with financial problems. There is also a relatively high level of pollution,” said Jan Havránek from “Obce v date”. You can find the full ranking here Author: red
Medicinal cannabis from a Czech supplier could be available in pharmacies from the end of June. Its price should be 149 crowns per gram without VAT. The State Institute for Drug Control (SUKL) has announced that the Elkoplast Slušovice company won the tender for deliveries of medical cannabis for the Czech market. Currently, the only available medical marijuana in the Czech Republic is a single THC-high strain sourced from the Netherlands Presently pharmacies can only offer imported marihuana, which is several times more expensive. Around 880,000 patients with multiple sclerosis, cancer and AIDS are believed to use medicinal marihuana in the country. One patient may buy up to 180 grams a month. About two dozen doctors have the right to prescribe medical cannabis in the Czech Republic. The contents of the active substances, cannabinoids, is precisely set and the cannabis may contain neither additives nor bacteria, moulds and heavy metals. Author: red
Pavel Nedvěd has come out of retirement to play alongside his son for Czech amateur side FC Skalna. Today, the retired Czech football legend will join the ranks of small hometown club Skalná 1.B in a match which could see up to 2,500 visitors. Nedved grew up in the Czech town and started his career at FC Skalna (he joined the local team at the age of five and went on to play at youth level for eight years), while his son, Pavel Jr, is already a registered player at the club. The match, against Královský Poříčí B, will kick-off at 2 pm. The former Ballon d’Or winner, 45, hung up his boots in 2009 after a trophy-laden career which included spells at Juventus, Lazio and Sparta Prague. Author: red
Some 71 percent of Czechs support the ban on smoking in restaurants, which has been in effect for about one year. The ban is opposed by 12 percent of people, according to a survey of the Faculty of Social Sciences of Charles University made in cooperation with the Ipsos agency. People also go to restaurants more often than three years ago, according to the survey. Traffic has increased mainly due to customers who rarely went in the past, mostly non-smokers. There has been an effort in the Chamber of Deputies, the lower house of Parliament, to weaken some aspects of the law. Read the full article here (Prague.TV)
The Legatum Institute released its 11th annual global Prosperity Index, a huge survey that ranks the most prosperous countries in the world. The organization compared 104 variables to come up with its list. These variables include traditional indicators like per-capita gross domestic product and the number of people in full-time work, but also more interesting figures such as the number of secure internet servers a country has, and how well-rested people feel on a day-to-day basis. The variables are then split into nine subindexes: economic quality, business environment, governance, personal freedom, social capital, safety and security, education, health, and natural environment. 28. Uruguay 27. Estonia 26. Czech Republic — Although the Czech Republic, now officially called Czechia, didn’t excel in any sub-index, it did finish in the top 30 in six of nine categories. 25. Portugal 24. Hong Kong 23. Japan 22. Malta 21. Slovenia 20. Spain 19. France 18. United States 17. Singapore 16. Belgium 15. Austria 14. Luxembourg 13. Iceland 12. Ireland 11. Germany 10. United Kingdom 9. Australia 8. Canada 7. Denmark 6. Netherlands 5. Sweden 4. Switzerland 3. Finland 2. New Zealand 1. Norway Author: red
A truly warm and sunny weather in the Czech Republic is prolonged at least until the end of this week. During the week, the temperature will be up to 31 degrees. Monday, we are expecting a clear and semi-clear weather on Monday. During the afternoon the cloud will cloud and clouds or even storms will appear in some places. Monday will be partly cloudy, with occasional showers and storms. Temperatures will be between 27 and 31°C. Tuesday will be partly cloudy to cloudy with a chance of rain in the afternoon. The temperature during the day will be around 27°C and 31°C, 17-13°C at night. Wednesday, the weather will continue to be cloudy to cloudy, with occasional showers in Bohemia. In the southwest and west, rainfall will be more frequent, Daily temperature between 27 to 31°C, in the southwest and west around 25°C. Thursday will be partly cloudy. Night temperatures will be between 17 and 13°C, daily between 25 and 29°C. Friday will be cloudy, with a chance of storms. The temperature during the day will reach 30°C, 13-17°C at night. During the weekend, we expect cloudy weather. In the afternoon, there will be a increased cloudiness, rare clouds, and storms,” said Miloš Dvořák from...
Two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitová rejoiced Thursday after a man who allegedly attacked her with a knife in 2016 was taken into custody but her spokesman said the case was not yet over. Zuzana Buresova, a spokesperson for the county court in the city of Prostějov. Buresova declined to give any further details. The public Czech Television said the man was a 54-year-old drug addict, adding Kvitová had identified him as the attacker before traveling to Paris to play at the French Open starting on Sunday. After the attack in her home in Prostějov in December 2016, Kvitová had surgery on injuries to her playing left hand. It took her more than five months to recover. Despite grim forecasts by doctors, who even warned she might lose her fingers, the 2011 and 2014 Wimbledon champion returned to the sport in time for the 2017 French Open. Kvitova sank from 11th in the world when the crime occurred to 29th at the turn of 2017 and 2018, but she has since climbed back into the top ten, also owing to back-to-back wins at Prague and Madrid at the turn of April and May. Author: red
This congenial American decided to move to Prague to start his career many years ago and now runs a new HR concept called GoodCall. What was his motivation to leave the US and establish a life and business in the Czech Republic? The first thing that we noticed when we came into their offices was the relaxed atmosphere. Everyone was smiling although nobody knew us. In a moment, we understood this is the place where all sorts of people can cooperate together. Blake, what brought you to the Czech Rep.? My great grandmother was Czech so I always had some connection with the Czech Republic. I chose Prague because it was still raw. There was something to be completed here. I felt there is a challenge. Recruitment in the Czech Republic is still a market that has a lot to develop. But one of the original reasons I came here was the idea that people in America live to work. But you (Czech people) work to live. Do you remember what was the hardest part for you in regards to business? We are a startup. We’ve gone through numerous challenges. One was moving from a tiny startup to, let’s say, a midsize...
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