Poll: Czechs expect public finance reforms to affect them negatively

More than 50% of Czechs expect changes brought about by the recent public finance reform bill to negatively affect their lives, concludes a poll conducted by the Factum Invenio agency, and released on Thursday. The least popular facets of the reform bill were the rise in the lower rate of VAT from 5% to 9%, and the introduction of medical fees, with over 80% of Czechs saying that they would be negatively affected by these changes. Respondents to the poll accepted the introduction of flat income tax as the best of all of the changes to be made, though this was still relatively speaking. The reforms will come into effect in January next year.