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40 percent of Czech children between the ages of 11 to 15 do not get sufficient sleep during working days, according to a study conducted by researchers at the Palacký University in Olomouc.

On average, children in this age group sleep roughly 8 hours a day during the week and 9.5 hours during weekend days. Using recommendations from the US’s Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, researchers highlighted that children up to the age of 12 need 12 hours of sleep a day, while teenagers need between 8 to 10 hours of sleep. The research team also found that teenagers actually sleep more than is required during weekends.

The study claims that children who spend more than two hours a day watching films, playing video games and using social media are much more likely to suffer from a sleep deficit.

The Czech Republic has sent its national revival plan, which would enable the country to draw CZK 180 billion from the European Union’s coronavirus recovery fund, to Brussels, Czech Television repoted on Wednesday. The European Commission will have two months to evaluate whether the proposal fits the union’s criteria. In total, the EU has agreed on spending EUR 750 billion for the union-wide recovery fund.

The Czech plan, approved by the government in May, counts on spending the largest amount of money, CZK 91 billion, on infrastructure and green energy.

According to the Czech Chamber of Commerce, the revival plan does not sufficiently address the need to digitise the state administration, despite 23 percent of the money being allocated for this goal.

In reaction to new requirements from the International Civil Aviation Organization, MPs voted in favour of issuing identity cards with chips that contain the fingerprint of the owner on Tuesday. These could start being issued as early as this year.  Details specifying the gender of the holder will also have to be displayed on the ID card. Children below the age of six, as well as people who are physically unable to provide fingerprint data, will be exempt from the rule.

Furthermore, the Chamber of Deputies approved legislation that will oblige foreigners with long-term residency in Czechia to exclusively insure themselves with the country’s public insurance provider VZP. The move was justified on the grounds that doctors will have certainty that they will be reimbursed for health checks of foreigners who come to the country for work.

Around four thousand people gathered in the centre of Prague on Tuesday to demand the resignation of Justice Minister Marie Benešová, accusing her of undermining the independence of the country’s legal system.

Benešová, a close ally of President Zeman, is under fire for casting doubt on the investigation of the 2014 Vrbětice blasts, which has linked the explosions to Russian agents, and is  being held responsible for the recent resignation of the country’s Supreme State Attorney Pavel Zeman, who left his post citing pressure from the justice minister.

The demonstrators demanded that the naming of a new chief state attorney be postponed until after the next general election, set for October.