Chamber of Deputies approves state budget for 2006

The lower house of the Czech Parliament has approved the state budget for 2006 with a deficit of 74.4 billion crowns (an estimated 3.1 billion US dollars). The budget deficit should not exceed 4.6 percent of the GDP if the Czech Republic is to meet conditions under the EU convergence programme paving the way for the country to adopt the euro. The lower house will decide at the end of the year how the 2006 state budget is to be divided among individual ministries.