The president of the Czech Republic is set to swear in the country’s new government on Friday. The prime minister-designate Petr Fiala announced President Milos Zeman´s decision to appoint his 18-member Cabinet after visiting the head of state at the presidential chateaux in Lany, west of Prague, on Monday. Two coalitions that collected a majority of support in the Oct 8-9 vote have signed a power-sharing deal to rule together led by Fiala as the premier, and he was sworn in on Nov 28. A three-party, liberal-conservative coalition known as Together, composed of the Civic Democratic Party, the Christian Democrats and the TOP 09 party, led the election with a 27.8% share of the vote. Together teamed up with a center-left liberal coalition made up of the Pirate Party and STAN – a group of mayors and independent candidates – which came in third place with 15.6% of votes. The new partnership holds 108 seats in the 200-seat lower house of Parliament, relegating populist Prime Minister Andrej Babis and his centrist ANO (YES) movement to the opposition. Babis narrowly lost the election with 27.1%. The five parties in the future governing coalition are closer to the European Union than the...
If your day doesn’t start until you’re up to speed on the latest headlines, then let us introduce you to our new morning fix. Senator Lukas Wagenknecht will run for the leadership position of the Czech Pirate Party at the meeting of its national forum in January, he has announced on the party’s online forum. Six cases of the Omicron variant of the coronavirus were officially confirmed in south Moravia on Monday, raising the Czech Republic’s number of definitive confirmations to eight, regional chief public health officer Renata Ciupek said. The Czech Republic will hold off on sending up to 150 soldiers to help Poland protect its border with Belarus now that the migrant situation has stabilised, outgoing Defence Minister Lubomír Metnar said on Monday. Electricity prices look set rise 30 to 50 percent next year and gas prices by 50 to 70 percent, outgoing Minister for industry and trade Karel Havlíček told reporters on Monday. Škoda Transportation will deliver 14 emission-free Škoda E´City electric buses to DPP in Prague. The company could take delivery of the first vehicle by the end of 2021, with the remaining 13 to follow in February 2022.
Freedom of expression and peaceful protests are in dangerous decline even in “established democracies” in Europe, according to the 2021 edition of the annual CIVICUS Monitor index published on Wednesday (December 8). “What we’re seeing year on year is that the right to peaceful assembly is under threat in Europe,” Aarti Narsee, Europe civic space researcher said. The latest edition of the index rates 197 countries and territories on the level of civil liberties. Among the twelve countries that have been downgraded in 2021, three are EU member states – Poland, Belgium and the Czech Republic. The report shows that the main violation of civil liberites in Europe is the detention of protesters. According to Narsee, this has been a growing trend in the continent over the past few years. Commission spokesman Christian Wigand said that “peaceful protests are a fundamental right in every democracy,” and added that “it’s for member states’ authorities to ensure that they can take place in a safe and secure environment.” However, detentions during protests are on the rise even in countries rated as ‘open’, Narsee said. COVID-19 and civil liberties Meanwhile, the COVID-19 pandemic has further diminished civic freedoms, according to civil society representatives. “People’s freedoms...
The price of electricity will rise by 30 to 50 percent next year, and the price of gas by 50 to 70 percent, said Karel Havlíček (ANO), Minister of Industry and Trade in resignation. The government in resignation will propose an amendment that will reduce the value-added tax (VAT) rate on electricity and gas from 21 percent to zero for the coming year. At the same time The government wants to waive the so-called supported energy sources (POZE). If both proposals pass, households’ energy payments will be reduced by about 35 percent. According to Havlíček, the remission of VAT and the fee for renewable resources are the only comprehensive measures that can be taken. The Czech Republic spends about 46 billion crowns a year on renewable sources, 20 billion of which are contributed by households and companies. In 2022, the state should pay the full amount of support. The price for water will increase by six percent year on year to CZK 107.72 per cubic meter next year. For Prague residents, this means that their monthly water price will increase by about 21 CZK per person, (252 CZK per person per year). According to the document, the more significant price...
The second year of the Mayor’s food collection will take place on December 16, 2021, in Mariánské náměstí. The aid will go to people in need, including the homeless, seniors living on the edge of poverty, or single parents. The collection, which is granted under the auspices of the Mayor of the Capital City of Prague Zdeněk Hřib, is organized by the Humanitarian Aid Foundation in cooperation with the Food Bank of Prague and will take place between 10 am and 6 pm. “It is clear that when it comes to a good thing, Praguers can unite. Last year, we have managed to collect a respectable amount of food, hygiene items and money to help those in need. It is important to realize that most people in need did not find themselves in this situation through their own fault. At the time of the pandemic when many people experienced a loss of income, which is also insufficiently compensated by the state, this is true twice as much,” said Zdeněk Hřib. The number of people in need began to increase in the Czech Republic due to the coronavirus epidemic and measures against its spread. Although the Czechs donated a record amount...
From this Monday the age limit for child vaccination against Covid-19 has been moved down to the age of 5. Registrations are possible either online, in the state’s vaccine registration system, or at the family’s local GP. Children will receive a third of the normal dose of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine. According to outgoing Health Minister Adam Vojtěch, relevant vaccines should become available by the end of the week. The Minister of Health Adam Vojtěch encouraged parents to get their children vaccinated. He has also issued new regulations regarding households with confirmed cases of Covid-19. According to the new rules, if a person is infected with Covid-19 then anybody living with them should be tested between 5-7 days after contact. This applies even if the members of the household are all vaccinated, but they need not quarantine. The Ministry also states that those sharing the living space with the infected should wear respirators and monitor their health until they receive their test results. These tests will be covered by public health insurance. Mandatory vaccination The Czech government ordered COVID-19 vaccinations for people working in hospitals and nursing homes as well as police officers, soldiers and some other professions and all citizens...
A young London practice – along with two local firms – has won an international master planning competition to regenerate the area of Florenc in Prague. Marko & Placemakers with Prague-based architect practices Unit Architekti and A69 – Architekti will design the 24ha regeneration area of Florenc, which is one the largest brownfield site close to the historic city centre. The practice said one of the most challenging tasks of the brief was to resolve the complex transport interchange hub including the bus station, metro station, nearby railway station and public transport links. Its vision called ‘Orchestrated complexity’ is intended to develop “the area’s unique character and identity through a compact and multifunctional urban framework”. Green infrastructure and the morphology of the buildings have been designed to maximise climate cooling, the Marko & Placemakers team added. The Florence 21 competition was launched by the City of Prague, Prague Institute of Planning and Development, Masaryk Station Development and ČSAD Praha Holding. It attracted 57 entries from all over the world.
If your day doesn’t start until you’re up to speed on the latest headlines, then let us introduce you to our new morning fix. Around 4,000 protestors have gathered on Wenceslas Square on Sunday to demonstrate against mandatory vaccination as well as what they see as infringements against personal liberties. The protest is organized by the initiative Chcípl pes. The incoming government led by Prime Minister designate Petr Fiala will fulfill the outgoing government’s pledge to raise the minimum wage by CZK 1,000 to CZK 16,200 in January 2022. January inflation rate will almost certainly exceed 7%, according to Czech National Bank (ČNB) board member Tomáš Holub, who believes this is only an optimistic estimate. Annual inflation rose to 6% in November from 5.8% in October. Marko & Placemakers with Prague-based architect practices Unit Architekti and A69 – Architekti will design the 24ha regeneration area of Florenc, which is the largest brownfield site close to Prague’s historic city centre. Škoda Transportation will deliver 14 emission-free Škoda E´City electric buses to DPP in Prague. The company could take delivery of the first vehicle by the end of 2021, with the remaining 13 to follow in February 2022.
Around 4,000 protestors have gathered on Wenceslas Square this Sunday. They are demonstrating against mandatory vaccination as well as alleged violations of personal freedoms and the Czech Constitution. The protest is organized by the initiative Chcípl pes, which opposes government Covid counter-measures. The demonstration under the statue of St. Wenceslas began with a song by Karel Kryl and a speech by the chairman of the initiative, Jakub Olbert. Demonstrators do not wear masks or keep enough space for social distancing. Protestors plan to march through the city center towards the Office of Government and Prague Castle. “We are only against compulsory vaccination, which the government is trying to introduce with the support of the Parliament of the Czech Republic,” the organizers said. At around 3 pm, the protesters marched from Wenceslas Square to the Straka Academy and from there to Hradčany. They plan to end the demonstration at the statue of the first Czechoslovak president Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk on Hradčanské náměstí. The outgoing Czech government has published a decree in the official Collection of Laws, requiring mandatory Covid-19 vaccination for all those over 60. The requirement would also apply to health workers, police officers, firefighters and the military. However, it...
Prague Pride has opened a new community center for LGBT + people at Železná 18, just a few steps from Old Town Square: the Rainbow House. The main goal is to create a safe and respectful environment in which “everyone can be themselves, regardless of their orientation and gender identity,” says Hana Třeštíková, Prague City Councillor for culture. The opening of the new community center took place symbolically on the eve of Human Rights Day, on December 10. With regard to the current situation, no public events will take place in the community center until the end of the year. “Since January, however, visitors can look forward to our open days, when it will be possible to visit the community center every Thursday between 3 pm and 9 pm. The main room features a library, PlayStation, board games and a jukebox. You can also just come and talk to friends or other visitors to the community space,” adds the director Tom Bílý. The Rainbow House, which has a capacity of up to 40 people, will host also lectures, discussions, screenings, support groups. In June 2019, according to a survey conducted between 4–14 May 2019 by CVVM, 48% of respondents said...
Czech President Milos Zeman said on Friday he had rejected the nomination of a foreign minister in the incoming cabinet over the candidate’s reservations toward Israel and toward cooperation with other members in a central European alliance. Zeman said in a statement he was ready to appoint the rest of the cabinet but the rejection sets the stage for a legal battle with the new prime minister, Petr Fiala, leader of the centre-right Civic Democrats. Fiala has backed the foreign minister nominee, Jan Lipavsky, from the liberal Pirate Party, which is part of Fiala’s coalition that won an election in October. Zeman, who is not the head of the executive under the constitution but has frequently exerted pressure on cabinets, said Lipavsky lacked qualifications. Zeman said he was rejecting Lipavsky’s “distanced” stance on Israel and on the central European Visegrad group, whose fellow members Poland and Hungary have been at loggerheads with European partners over the rule of law. The Czech Republic has had strong ties with Israel and Fiala’s coalition pledged to hold that line. Lipavsky signed a letter alongside more than 400 other lawmakers from Europe in February in protesting Israel’s expansion of settlements in the West Bank....
The company Technology for the Capital City Prague (THMP) has replaced the first few shelters at public transport stops operated by the French company JCDecaux. Passengers can already use the new shelters in Prague 13 at the Píškova and Velká Ohrada stops. The prototype of the transit stop has been tested in Palacký Square for almost two years. As mayor Zdeněk Hřib (Pirates) and THMP director Tomáš Jílek told journalists yesterday, their administration and the management of advertising spaces should be taken over by the transport company (DPP). From January 2022, THMP will receive 15 shelters every week. Each shelter costs about 350 thousand CZK. “Street furniture is an often overlooked but very important part of the city that we shouldn’t forget. In addition to providing user comfort, it should be attractive and easy to maintain. The new shelter has all of these attributes, so I’m pleased they will gradually start spreading throughout Prague,” said Mayor of Prague, Zdeněk Hřib. “We have rejected a proposal to extend this contract for seven years without competition. Prague deserves to have its own shelters and other elements of city furniture from benches to bicycle stands. The aim is for the city not to be...
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