• Health minister plans to increase testing capacity for Covid-19
    07/30/2020

    The Minister of Health Adam Vojtěch plans to increase the testing capacity for Covid-19. At the moment, laboratories in the Czech Republic are able to carry out some 17,000 tests a day.

    Mr Vojtěch plans to increase the testing capacity by up to 25,000 a day by establishing a network of central laboratories in every region of the country.

    He also said that in the autumn, when the number of respiratory diseases is likely to be higher, labs would prioritise high-risk groups, such as people with heart problems, high blood pressure or diabetes.

    There are currently 106 laboratories in the Czech Republic authorised to carry out testing for Covid-19.
    Author: Ruth Fraňková

  • Delayed Rembrandt exhibition set to start in Prague in September
    07/30/2020

    An exhibition of works by Rembrandt is set to go ahead at the National Gallery in Prague in September, several months after it was originally planned. The collection of over 100 works by the great Dutch painter had been due to go on show in April but the exhibition was postponed due to the coronavirus situation.

    Rembrandt: Portrait of a Man will run from September 25 to the end of January at the National Gallery’s Kinský Palace building on Old Town Square.

  • Total Covid-19 cases in Czech Republic passes 16,000 mark
    07/30/2020

    The total number of known Covid-19 cases in the Czech Republic has passed the 16,000 mark. A rise of 278 on Wednesday brought the total to 16,093, according to official Ministry of Health data. Wednesday’s increase in the number of detected cases was the second highest one-day jump since June. The figure for current cases now stands at 4,290, the highest level seen since mid-April.

    The largest number of newly detected cases in the last week was recorded in Prachatice in South Bohemia, where there has been an outbreak at one company.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • CR net beneficiary of CZK 50 billion in EU funds in first half of year
    07/29/2020

    The Czech Republic received CZK 50.1 billion crowns more from the coffers of the European Union in the first half of 2020 than it contributed to them, the Ministry of Finance said on Wednesday. In the same period last year the country was a net beneficiary of EU funding to the tune of CZK 24.4 billion.

    The increase mainly stems from the Czech Republic receiving higher amounts from EU funds, including advances on monies made available in response to the coronavirus crisis.

    The Czech Republic has been a net beneficiary of EU funding since it became a member in 2004.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Zaorálek: Man with far-right connections has no place on Social Democrat ticket
    07/29/2020

    The Czech minister of culture, Lubomír Zaorálek, says a man who has previously been connected with right-wing extremists should not be standing for his party the Social Democrats in regional elections. Mr. Zaorálek said Petr Benda has no place on the grouping’s ticket in October. Mr. Benda previously stood for election for the far-right Worker’s Party for Justice.

    Mr. Zaorálek said such a candidature cast doubt on the principles of the Social Democratic Party, which have been in place for 140 years.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Prague doctors keep patient alive on artificial lung for record 143 days
    07/29/2020

    Doctors at Prague’s General University Hospital kept a patient alive on an artificial extracorporeal lung for 143 days before she was able to receive a transplant, the Czech News Agency reported. The previous world record was 79 days.

    The treatment saved the life of a 36-year-old with severe pulmonary hypertension.  The mother of two underwent surgery on June 18 and is still in intensive care.

    Similar operations have been performed on only around 20 patients in the world in the last decade; this was the first time one was carried out in the Czech Republic.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Industry group calls for investment at meeting with PM
    07/29/2020

    The Confederation of Industry and Transport have called on the government to encourage corporate and public investment, stimulate innovation and accelerate the digital transformation of companies and the state.

    Speaking after a meeting with Prime Minister Andrej Babiš on Wednesday, the head of the confederation, Jaroslav Hanák, said those who did not invest would lose, adding that investment was key to restarting the economy.

    Mr. Hanák also said that the prime minister had assured him the country had enough protective equipment to handle the Covid-19 situation for two months.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Weather forecast
    07/29/2020

    Thursday should be sunny in the Czech Republic, with temperatures of up to 26 degrees Celsius. Skies are expected to turn overcast in many parts of the country on Sunday.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Zeman appoints 33 new judges in first appearance in month
    07/29/2020

    President Miloš Zeman appointed 33 new judges, 20 of them women, to the Czech judiciary on Wednesday. It was the first time the head of state, who has been on holiday, had appeared in public since the end of June.

    The ceremony at Prague Castle was accompanied by heightened hygiene measures, with all present – including Mr. Zeman – wearing facemasks. Both the president and the minister of justice, Marie Benešová, shook hands with the new judges.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Prague sees record one-day jump in known Covid-19 cases
    07/29/2020

    On Tuesday Prague saw the highest single-day jump in Covid-19 numbers since the pandemic reached the Czech Republic. Some 101 new cases were detected in the capital. A total of 275 fresh cases were registered around the country, which was the second highest number since June.

    Over 4,000 people in the country are known to have the virus at present while the total number since the crisis began is close to 16,000. There have been 373 deaths.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

Pages