President Klaus receives Civic Democrat leader

President Václav Klaus on Friday formally received the acting chairman of the Civic Democrats Petr Nečas. It is his first official contact with the new party leader since he replaced Mirek Topolánek who was forced to resign at the end of March over controversial comments about homosexuals and Jews. Mr. Nečas said the talks had focused largely on the need to reduce the country’s deepening public finance deficit which the president considered of the utmost importance. The officials also discussed the need for internal reform and party unity after a year of scandals and internal rifts. Mr. Klaus who founded the party in the 1990s, formally left its ranks in 2008 claiming it had abandoned its original course.