News

Health union representatives have stated publicly that they are six billion crowns short (roughly 274 million US dollars) in the state budget to be able to introduce a new system of social care that takes effect on January 1st. The chairman of the Health and Social Care Workers' Union stated on Monday if the necessary funds are not allotted there will be a danger the quality of health care in some institutions could worsen, or that some could lack funds for operation altogether. According to the new legislation on social services, patients will be able to directly receive money for services and decide on their own which services to pay for, as well as to choose whether they will be cared for by family, an assistant, or an institution.

Mr Topolanek also said Social Democrat leader and outgoing prime minister Jiri Paroubek has no chance to successfully form a cabinet after his talks with the Christian Democrats about a Communist-backed cabinet collapsed two weeks ago. Mr Topolanek said that Mr Paroubek had lost his chance to form a new cabinet by negotiating a Communist-supported government with former Christian Democrat leader Miroslav Kalousek, a step which resulted last week in Mr Kalousek's resignation from the post of Christian Democrat chairman.

Future members of the minority cabinet of the Civic Democratic Party have articulated their concrete ideas of what to do after they are appointed. For example, future labour minister Petr Necas said work on the pension reform must be started and changes should be implemented in the welfare system that would motivate people to actively seek employment. Future local development minister Petr Gandalovic is planning to change the system of drawing money from EU funds. Mr Gandalovic says the Czech Republic needs to speed up the drawing for the years 2004-2006 as there is a big delay in some financial programmes and the country might have to return the money to Brussels.

More than 200 candidates, a record number, have put themselves forward for election to the upper house of the Czech Parliament ahead of a vote scheduled for the end of October, authorities said on Friday. In all 204 candidates will compete for the 27 seats up for grabs, beating the previous record of 197 set in 2004. The Czech Republic elects its senators every two years, when a third of the 81 seats become available. Observers say the elections will be an important political indicator after the country's June general election left the lower house split evenly between right- and left-wing parties.

One of the candidates is Pavla Topolankova, the wife of the prime minister designate Mirek Topolanek, who is standing on a platform openly hostile to her husband's right-wing Civic Democratic Party.