• Social Democrats to work on their image
    09/08/2007

    The leadership of the opposition Social Democratic Party has approved an action plan aimed at improving the party's image and attracting new supporters. Party leader Jiri Paroubek told journalists it was essential to cease internal squabbling and dispel two myths which were hurting the party - its alleged communist leaning and rumors of corruption.
    Author: Daniela Lazarová

  • Czech waste illegally dumped in Slovakia
    09/08/2007

    The Slovak authorities say they have uncovered containers of illegally imported Czech waste and have launched criminal proceedings against unknown perpetrators. The waste - 18,000 liters of used oil - was reportedly brought in by a lorry with Czech number plates and left on the outskirts of a farming cooperative in central Slovakia. Policemen working on the case say that they suspect the perpetrators planned to dump a total of 300,000 liters of used oil on the site. In May of this year Slovak customs officials detained two lorries carrying illegal waste from Austria.
    Author: Daniela Lazarová

  • Syphilis spreads among Czech porn actors
    09/08/2007

    The Czech Health Ministry has registered an increase in the number of people diagnosed with syphilis. The disease appears to have spread among the country's porn actors, twenty three of whom were diagnosed with it in August. The country's chief health inspector Michael Vit has warned of the dangers of untreated syphilis, which can result in dementia and death and urged Czechs who may have any doubts at all regarding their health to seek medical attention as soon as possible.
    Author: Daniela Lazarová

  • Hundreds evacuated due to flooding
    09/07/2007

    Hundreds of people have been evacuated from their homes in north Moravia due to flooding, while other areas are under flood alert following heavy rains. Around 200 people were forced to leave their homes in Bruntal on Thursday night, as were 100 others in nearby towns. The evacuees are being put up in local schools. Meanwhile, soldiers have been dispatched to help shore up flood defences with sandbags. A state of emergency has been declared in several areas of north Moravia and Silesia.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Czech crown at less than 20 to US dollar for first time ever on Friday
    09/07/2007

    The Czech crown stood at less than 20 to the US dollar for the first time in its history on Friday, the financial website Patria Online reported. The dollar was trading at 19.98 crowns for a few hours, thought it later rose to 20.04. Analysts put the development down to the dollar's fall on world markets. At the start of 2007 the dollar was worth 20.67 crowns.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Prague to get congestion charge in historical centre, says Bem
    09/07/2007

    Prague will introduce a pilot congestion charge system in the historical centre of the city in 2009, the city's mayor Pavel Bem told the iDnes news website. A full congestion charge would then be launched a year later, the mayor said. Motorists would pay the toll by way of a microchip, with a fee likely to reach between 50 and 150 crowns a day.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Growth in economy slows to 6 percent
    09/07/2007

    Growth in the Czech economy slowed slightly in the second quarter of this year, according to figures released on Friday. While year-on-year growth in gross domestic product stood at 6.4 percent in the first quarter of 2007, in the April to July period it fell to 6 percent. However, the second quarter growth was faster than expected; it has been attributed to household spending and gross fixed capital formation.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Inspectors to improve standards on Czech trains
    09/07/2007

    The Ministry of Transport plans to create a team of inspectors to help raise standards on Czech trains, Hospordarske noviny reported. The inspectors will check whether there is running water and toilet paper in toilets, as well as monitoring the punctuality of trains and checking whether the temperature in wagons reaches at least 18 degrees Celsius, the paper said. The Transport Ministry will levy fines for failure to meet the required standards.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • CzechInvest closes Silicon Valley office
    09/07/2007

    The state investment agency CzechInvest has closed its office in California's Silicon Valley, Hospodarske noviny reported. The closure comes despite the Czech government's stated aim of making the development of innovation and information technology a priority, the paper said. The head of CzechInvest, Roman Cermak, said the Silicon Valley office had been closed because it had poorer results than the agency's other US office, in Chicago.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • LN: Prague could request removal of US radar base at any time
    09/07/2007

    The Czech Republic will be able to ask the United States to remove a radar base the US is planning to build in central Bohemia, Lidove noviny reported. The planned contract on the base will be open-ended and can be terminated by either country at any time, it said. An unnamed source told the daily that Washington was aware political changes in the Czech Republic could necessitate the removal of the base within a few months. Prague is set to decide early next year whether to allow the base, which would be part of a US global anti-missile defence system.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

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