Interim prime minister willing to discuss cabinet line-up

The interim prime minister, Jan Fischer, has said he is willing to discuss the proposed cabinet line-up after shocking political leaders with his own choice of candidates. Mr. Fischer was selected for the post of interim prime minister under an agreement between the two strongest parties in Parliament who expected to push through their own candidates for various ministerial posts. However Mr. Fischer deviated from the planned scenario and the list of candidates which he presented to President Vaclav Klaus on Friday included several unexpected names, the most controversial of which appears to be the nominee for finance minister Jaroslav Míl.

The outgoing prime minister, Mirek Topolánek, said he was surprised by the move and indicated that the proposed line-up would not win a vote of confidence in Parliament. Social Democrat leader Jiří Paroubek likewise criticized the proposed line-up, saying he expected further negotiations. President Klaus has not commented on the development.

The Fisher cabinet was expected to take over on May 8th and lead the country to early elections in October. It is not clear if this unexpected hurdle will delay its appointment.