Former finance minister to quit his party, Christian Democrats

The former Czech finance minister, Miroslav Kalousek, said on Thursday he was leaving his party, the Christian Democrats, over arguments on party policies and repeated insults by other Christian Democrats. Mr Kalousek’s statement, published on the party website, appeared just hours before the start of a Christian Democrat party conference that will elect a new leader. Mr Kalousek, who served as finance minister in the centre-right government of PM Mirek Topolánek, announced earlier he planned to form a new political party to run in the autumn’s early general election.