• Charges filed against ex-PM Babiš over alleged fraud
    03/21/2022

    The state prosecutor has filed charges against former Czech prime minister, Andrej Babiš, over alleged subsidy fraud. A spokesperson for the Prague State Prosecutor’s Office said on Monday that indictments had been filed against the ANO party leader and an advisor in connection with the drawing of around CZK 50 million in European Union grants for Stork’s Nest, a conference centre near Prague.

    Mr. Babiš denies any wrongdoing and says the matter is intended to drive him out of politics.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Czech footballers gather ahead of World Cup playoff semis
    03/21/2022

    The Czech national soccer squad have gathered in Prague ahead of a game against Sweden for a place in the finals of the playoffs for this year’s World Cup in Qatar. If the Czechs overcome the Swedes on Thursday they will face Poland the following Tuesday for a berth in the sport’s biggest international event.

    The 23-man squad does not include striker Patrik Schick, who is injured. Coach Jaroslav Šilhavý has called up four uncapped players from the Czech league.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Over 205,000 visas now granted to Ukrainians
    03/21/2022

    Over 205,000 people fleeing Russia’s war on Ukraine have now received special visas to be in the Czech Republic, the Ministry of the Interior said on Monday. To date around 110,000 have registered with the country’s migration police.

    The highest number of refugees has come to Prague, followed by the Central Bohemian and South Moravian regions.

    The minister of the interior, Vít Rakušan, said on Sunday that the government still believed there were around 270,000 Ukrainian refugees in the Czech Republic.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Legislation aiding Ukrainian refugees takes effect
    03/21/2022

    A package of legislation aimed at helping Ukrainian refugees to integrate in the Czech Republic came into force on Monday. Collectively known as Lex Ukraine, it covers the provision of visas, employment, social protection and access to health care and education.

    Ukrainians in possession of visas to the Czech Republic now have the same access to the labour market as people with permanent residency status under legislation that will be in place for the next 12 months.

    Refugees can also apply for a humanitarian allowance of CZK 5,000 each.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Covid reproduction number drops below 1.0 mark
    03/21/2022

    Laboratories in the Czech Republic registered 2,275 new cases of Covid-19 on Sunday and 370 reinfections, out of 9,400 tests conducted that day. The reproduction number has dropped slightly to 0.99 and the incidence number is now at around 500 per 100,000 inhabitants. The number of patients hospitalized with Covid is just under 1,800, a drop by almost 400 in the course of the past week. Interest in tests and vaccines has dropped to an all-time low with a mere 184 vaccines administered on Sunday.
    Author: Daniela Lazarová

  • Central bank governor predicts zero economic growth
    03/21/2022

    The high inflation may lead to a dramatic slide in economic growth, central bank governor Jiří Rusnok told Czech Television on Sunday. Mr. Rusnok said inflation could reach 13 to 14 percent in the coming months, a scenario that could result in zero economic growth at the end of the year. He said a recession was likely not just in the Czech Republic but across Europe, which would also hurt the export-dependent Czech economy. Inflation reached 11.1 percent in February.
    Author: Daniela Lazarová

  • Weather forecast
    03/20/2022

    Monday should be bright and sunny with day temperatures between 9 and 13 degrees Celsius.

  • Czech finance minister: total ban on trade with Russia unrealistic
    03/20/2022

    A total ban on EU trade with Russia proposed by Polish Prime Minister Mateus Morawiecki is not realistic and has little chance of winning approval, Czech Finance Minister Zbynek Stanjura said on Sunday. He said the sanctions taken so far were effective, adding that further sanctions were in the pipeline. The Czech government is to meet at the start of next week to debate this proposal as well as Poland’s proposal for an international peacekeeping mission in Ukraine.
    Author: Daniela Lazarová

  • Government to ask lower house to extend state of emergency
    03/20/2022

    The government will ask the lower house of Parliament to extend the state of emergency in the country in connection with the refugee crisis, Interior Minister Vit Rakušan said on Sunday. Speaking in a debate on Czech Television, Mr. Rakušan said state of emergency is essential in helping to secure the needs of the close to 300,000 refugees now on Czech territory. The cabinet declared a state of emergency on March 4, for a period of 30 days, and a further extension needs to be sanctioned by Parliament.
    Author: Daniela Lazarová

  • Over 200,000 Ukrainians handed humanitarian visas, overall number now nearing 300,000
    03/20/2022

    Over 200,000 Ukrainian refugees have now received special humanitarian visas in the Czech Republic, and the overall number of refugees in the country, according to mobile operators, is nearing 300,000. Prime Minister Petr Fiala said this week that the Czech Republic had come close to the limit of refugees the country was able to absorb. The government last week negotiated with the regions about how many refugees they could take and the fire service transported some of those who arrived in Prague to other regions in order to even out the burden and provide refugees with more suitable accommodation. In the past days Prague was having to resort to emergency accommodation such as providing inflated beds and sleeping bags in gym halls.
    Author: Daniela Lazarová

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