News

An appeals court in Olomouc on Tuesday confirmed a verdict of nine years in prison for a 38-year-old man convicted of growing large quantities of marihuana plants. The man, who was arrested in March 2012, ran several indoor plantations with more than 2000 plants of the illicit drug; he claimed he never sold the drug on the black market as he wanted to gain experience to be able to take part in a medical marihuana growing programme once it’s legalized for Czech growers. However, the court said the man grew the plants in expectation of financial benefits.

Expert analysis commissioned by Germany’s opposition Green Party, has questioned the safety of the Temelín nuclear power plant in the Czech Republic. The latest issue of the German weekly Der Spiegel reported on the matter. According to the magazine, the study cast doubt on the quality of welds between Temelín’s pressure vessel and the surrounding cooling system, arguing that their quality was not well-documented or that existing documentation contained mistakes. The matter has been raised before and Czech experts found no defects in construction. Germany’s environment minister, Peter Altmaier, according to the publication, also saw no reason to press for additional tests at the Czech plant, earning him criticism from opponents of nuclear energy in Germany.

The chairman of Public Affairs, Vít Bárta, has announced he will run in the upcoming election under the banner of Dawn, a political movement founded by tourism expert turned senator Tomio Okamura. Mr Bárta will head the candidates’ list in the region of Plzeň and faces the Civic Democrats’ Jiří Pospíšil and others. Mr Okamura strongly welcomed Mr Bárta as a candidate, saying – in his view – the leader of Public Affairs (the upstart party in the last election) was the only minister who had taken seriously anti-corruption recommendations put forward by the government’s economic advisory council, NERV, seriously. Over the course of the last three years, Public Affairs was first a coalition member, continuing in the opposition after the party splintered into two groups, one of them LIDEM formerly led by Karolína Peake.

The Czech Environmental Inspectorate has halted the planned demolition of the former Setuza chemical plant in Lovosice after it was discovered the site housed many tonnes of hazardous chemicals. The information was confirmed by spokeswoman Simona Ciganková. Compounds of radioactive elements were also among the chemicals found in the plant. Inspectors will inform the Regional Office´s environmental section, Lovosice Town Hall and the State Office for Nuclear Safety about the situation, the spokeswoman said. The inspectorate will also launch administrative proceedings on sanctions against the complex's current owner. As a company, Setuza produced technical lubricants, oil bases as well as fodder mixtures.