• Vote on gay-marriage bill postponed
    03/07/2006

    The lower house of Parliament has put off voting on a same-sex registered partnership bill until next Tuesday. The bill which would legalize gay marriages in the Czech Republic had already passed through both houses of Parliament but President Klaus' veto sent it back to the lower house. The bill's advocates would need a majority of 101 votes to override the president's veto, and have postponed the vote in order to make sure that as many deputies as possible are present.
    Author: Daniela Lazarová

  • Czechs giving more money to charities
    03/07/2006

    The number of Czechs who contribute to charities is on the rise. Four out five Czechs said in a poll they had contributed to some humanitarian organization in the course of the last two years. Seventy percent of people polled said they now contribute to charities regularly, that's up from 45 percent in 2004. The increase in solidarity has been apparent ever since the tsunami disaster in south east Asia when Czechs collected a record sum of money in emergency aid.
    Author: Daniela Lazarová

  • Janda places 8th at World Cup ski jump event
    03/07/2006

    Czech ski jumper Jakub Janda placed eighth at the World Cup ski jump event in Finland on Tuesday. The only other Czech to make it to the second round was Borek Sedlak who came in 30th. The victory went to Andreas Kuttel from Switzerland who defended his lead in the first round with a 129 metres jump.
    Author: Daniela Lazarová

  • EU health commissioner discusses bird flu measures in Prague
    03/06/2006

    The EU health commissioner Markos Kyprianou has met Czech health ministry officials in Prague to discuss measures concerning a potential outbreak of bird flu, among them the country's emergency plan and strategic stockpiles of antiviral drugs and other medicines. According to the Czech Chief Hygiene Officer Michael Vit, Mr Kyprianou said the Czech Republic was well prepared for a potential epidemic of bird flu.
    Author: Pavla Horáková

  • Kyprianou: CR faces sanctions unless implements EU anti-smoking legislation
    03/06/2006

    The EU Health Commissioner Markos Kyprianou told reporters on Monday that unless the Czech Republic implements European anti-smoking legislation and restricts tobacco advertising, it faces sanctions from the EU. Mr Kyprianou said the European Commission will ask the Czech Republic to toughen its anti-smoking legislation. If the requirement is not met, Mr Kyprianou said, there is a number of steps, including sanctions, which the EU could apply.
    Author: Pavla Horáková

  • Civic Democrats: PM takes political advantage of same-sex partnership bill
    03/06/2006

    Some members of the opposition Civic Democrats have accused Prime Minister Jiri Paroubek of taking political advantage of the bill on registered partnerships of same-sex couples due to be voted on by the lower house this week. In a statement released on Monday, they said Mr Paroubek is trying to politically appropriate the bill and to present himself as its sole guarantor, which, as they said, may discourage some Civic Democrat deputies from voting for the bill. Both the lower house and the Senate have passed the bill, but president Vaclav Klaus vetoed it last month. To override the veto, the lower house now needs a majority of 101 votes in the 200-seat chamber.
    Author: Pavla Horáková

  • Agriculture Ministry planning to distribute leaflets on bird flu
    03/06/2006

    The Agriculture Ministry is considering distributing information leaflets on bird flu to every household in the Czech Republic, Agriculture Minister Jan Mladek said on Monday. He added that the ministry is assessing the costs of such a campaign. He said leaflets telling consumers how to handle food products in order to minimise the risk of infection are ready for distribution.
    Author: Pavla Horáková

  • Poll: Social Democrats losing support; Civic Democrats in the lead
    03/06/2006

    An opinion poll just released by the Factum agency suggests that support for the ruling Social Democrats is falling three months before parliamentary elections. According to the poll, the opposition Civic Democrats would get the largest percentage of the vote and gain 68 seats in the 200-member lower house, followed by the Social Democrats with 42 MPs. The Communist Party would get 42 seats and the Christian Democrats would gain 20 seats - only three seats more than the Green Party, which, according to Factum, would be the fifth party to make it to parliament.
    Author: Pavla Horáková

  • Minister says bird flu now likely in Czech Republic - though no cases uncovered yet
    03/05/2006

    Agriculture Minister Jan Mladek has said that bird flu - the deadly H5N1 virus - has likely already reached the Czech Republic, although no cases have been uncovered yet. The minister made the comment on Sunday during a discussion programme on the commercial broadcaster TV Nova. On Sunday the spokesman for the Czech State Veterinary Authority, Josef Duben, also confirmed no cases of the virus had been found - with more than 500 wild and more than 100 domestic specimens all testing negative. All of the Czech Republic's neighbours - Poland the latest on Sunday - have now confirmed cases of the virus.
    Author: Jan Velinger

  • Heavy snowfall continues to worsen conditions on country's roads
    03/05/2006

    Heavy snowfall in parts of the Czech Republic has continued to worsen conditions on some roads, especially in parts of Southern Bohemia and Moravia. The Czech Republic, like other parts of Central and Eastern Europe, has experienced one of its harsher winters in recent memory. On Sunday, snow fall played a role in delays on roads for example in the Prachitice region of Southern Bohemia, which saw 20 centimetres of new snow overnight. Drivers have been warned to proceed with caution. Road clearing crews spent much of Saturday night clearing extensive snowdrifts.
    Author: Jan Velinger

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