News

Representatives of unions, industry and the government met on Friday for three-way talks on the proposal for next year’s budget. Union and industry representatives said that the finance ministry’s draft budget was not conducive enough to economic growth and that the caretaker government should not be so strict in complying with the EU-mandated deficit ceiling of three percent of the GDP. After the talks, Prime Minister Jiří Rusnok announced that the government will not change the 112-billion crown deficit proposed in the draft budget, which is just below three percent of GDP. The outgoing government will be voting on the final proposal next Wednesday, though it will not be discussed by the lower house of parliament until after the general elections in late October. The budget proposal may be significantly altered by the new government and lower house.

The Prague City Hall has approved a controversial amendment to the ordinance on the regulation of gambling. The new city ordinance has lowered the number of places where gambling is allowed from 650 to 317 and includes a ban on advertising of gambling facilities and neon-light signs outside of these locations. Gambling facilities are an important source of income for the city coffers. Due to the limit on the number of places where gambling machines can be located, the city will most likely lose up to 400 million crowns from its budget, which is approximately half of what it receives from gambling today. The Green Party has strongly criticized the amendment, saying that it will not influence the overall number of gamblers. Others criticized the change for not being strict enough and leaving room for possible corruption.

The Supreme Administrative Court has ruled that the management of Šumava National Park made the right decision in felling trees in bark-beetle-infested areas in the protected nature reserve. The decision was contested by environmental activists who have long advocated less radical methods in fighting the spread of bark beetle. The head of Šumava Park Jiří Mánek has welcomed the decision, saying that after several years of problems the bark beetle infestation was once again under control.

TOP 09 party has started its election campaign on Friday with a tram ride through Prague. The party’s chairman Karel Schwarzenberg, first deputy chairman Miroslav Kalousek and other candidates travelled through the capital on the special TOP 09 line, inviting passersby to join them on the tram to talk about their concerns and enjoy the refreshments and entertainment provided. Former Finance Minister Miroslav Kalousek said that they picked a tram to kick off the campaign for symbolic reasons, to show that the party knows where it is going, and that like a tram it is not backing up on tis way to Western Europe.