• 11/22/2024

    Saturday should be clear to partly cloudy and mostly dry around the country with day temperatures between 0 and 5 degrees Celsius.

  • 11/22/2024

    Over 2,250 stores and 5,000 volunteers around Czechia will participate in the autumn National Food Ccollection day on Saturday. The collection is a bi-annual event in which people can donate non-perishable food and basic hygiene products for the needy. The goods are distributed by food banks to seniors, single mothers, disadvantaged families and children in care homes. People can also make donations online. The collection was first launched in 2013 and the number of shops supporting it has tripled over the years. More information is available on the website www.sbirkapotravin.cz. There is a map on the collection website where people can find participating stores in their area.

  • 11/22/2024

    The Ministry of Justice has proposed a measure that would increase the protection of children against sexual abuse from people working in the sphere of education, sport and hobby groups. The ministry wants to introduce a special certificate, which school principals and camp leaders could request to see, that would warn them about potentially problematic candidates. Under the present legislation courts may impose a ban on activities with children and young people in addition to a prison sentence, but the maximum period for which it can be imposed under the law is now ten years. The proposed certificate would thus prevent convicted offenders from ever again working with children. There are hundreds of cases of sexual abuse of children under 15 in the Czech Republic every year.

  • 11/22/2024

    Opposition ANO party leader Andrej Babiš disrupted a session of the lower house on Friday with a spate of insults against Prime Minister Petr Fiala during which the entire government and deputies of the ruling coalition left the assembly hall. Mr. Babiš tabled a proposal for the house to discuss the prime minister’s mental health in connection with a number of his recent pronouncements, in particular his promise to raise Czech salaries to the level of those in Germany in four years’ time. Babiš said the prime minister was not fit to run the government. The session was interrupted when coalition deputies walked out. MPs were expected to vote on an amendment on the further extension of temporary protection for refugees from Ukraine.

  • 11/22/2024

    Czechia is on track to record its highest-ever average annual temperature, likely exceeding 10°C for the first time, according to meteorologist Jáchym Brzezina from the Czech Hydrometeorological Institute. Brzezina said on the X network that if November and December maintain average temperatures, the annual average will reach 10.3°C, which is 0.6°C higher than last year.

    This year has been extreme, with every month exceeding the 1991–2020 average. February was record warm, surpassing the average by more than 6°C, while March, August, and September were at least 2°C above average.

    A comparison of the averages shows how extreme the last two years have been even compared to previous warm years. 2023 was 1.4°C warmer than the 1991–2020 average, and this year’s anticipated 10.3°C average would mark a nearly 3°C increase compared to the 1961–1990 baseline.

    Author: Ruth Fraňková
  • 11/22/2024

    Foreign Minister Jan Lipavský is in Kyiv on his fourth visit to Ukraine since the start of Russia’s large-scale invasion nearly three years ago. His trip comes a day after Russia launched a powerful medium-range missile at Ukraine.

    On Friday Mr. Lipavský met with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha and Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal to discuss the effectiveness of Czech aid to Ukraine and the country's immediate needs. He also visited grounds that are being cleared of mines in Myla near Kyiv, an activity that Czechia is supporting financially, and toured Ochmatdyt children's hospital, which was severely damaged by a Russian air strike in July.

    Czechia has been a key ally of Ukraine, providing heavy weapons early in the war and initiating EU-wide efforts to source artillery ammunition for Kyiv. The Czech Foreign Minister has also pushed for tighter restrictions on Russian diplomats in Europe.

    Author: Ruth Fraňková
  • 11/21/2024

    Friday will see mostly cloudy skies with occasional snow showers, mainly in the mountains and eastern areas. Day temperatures will range between -1 and 3 °C.

    Author: Ruth Fraňková
  • 11/21/2024

    A new opinion poll carried out by NMS Market Research agency suggests that the opposition ANO Party would receive 35.3% of the vote in a general election held in November. This is an improvement of 2.4 percentage points on the previous poll carried out in October, the survey indicates.

    Mayors and Independents would place second with 11.1%, followed by the Civic Democrats with 10%. The Pirate Party and the opposition Freedom and Direct Democracy and the Communists would also cross the 5 percent threshold needed to win seats in the lower house.

    Author: Ruth Fraňková
  • 11/21/2024

    Hundreds of police officers, firefighters, and other security personnel gathered outside the Interior Ministry in Prague on Thursday to protest against low salaries and lack of staff.

    Organized by the Union of Security Forces, the protest is supported by unions representing police, firefighters, customs officers, prison services, municipal police, and mountain rescue teams.

    Despite Interior Minister Vít Rakušan's recent promise to raise wages by 2,500 CZK, unions are dissatisfied, noting that earlier commitments suggested a 10% increase. Protesters also aim to highlight staffing shortages and excessive bureaucracy in security forces.

    Author: Ruth Fraňková
  • 11/21/2024

    Passenger car production in Czechia between January and October grew by 6.6% year-on-year, reaching 1.239 million vehicles, according to data released by the Automobile Industry Association on Thursday. However, the pace of production has slowed down compared to the start of the year.

    Production of battery-powered cars dropped by 20% year-on-year to 127,222 units, making up 10.3% of total production, compared to last year's 13.6% share.

    Toyota saw the highest surge in production, increasing output by 25% to 191,206 vehicles in the first 10 months of 2023, while Škoda Auto, the country’s largest carmaker, experienced a 5.7% rise, producing 763,685 vehicles. Meanwhile, Hyundai experienced a slight decline, manufacturing 284,250 cars-2,350 fewer than last year.

    Author: Ruth Fraňková

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