Press Review

All the papers lead with different stories today, ranging from the first suspected case of bird flu in Europe to the impact of the government's finance reform plan on Czech households.

While the prices of petrol, cigarettes and telecommunication services have already been raised, another VAT hike that the coalition government debated this weekend and could come into effect as of May, will see charges for water and sewage, tickets to cultural events, and food in restaurants rise as well. Mlada Fronta Dnes makes its own calculation and comes to the conclusion that the monthly outgoings of families with children will rise by 1,000 crowns as a result of the government's planned economic changes for this year. It furthermore predicts that a family with two children and two salaries of 20,000 Czech crowns each will have to pay 13,400 crowns more in taxes.

While Mlada Fronta Dnes expects working couples with children to suffer financially, the country's leading business daily Hospodarske Noviny writes that it is this parof society that will be the only one to benefit from the plan. It points out, though, that the likelihood of the plan making it through parliament is small. Not just because the opposition parties have already hinted they would never support it but also because there are members of the senior coalition party, the Social Democrats, who object to part of the plan. Should the cost of water rise, there is little chance of the much-needed rent law being approved, Social Democrat MP Stanislav Krecek, tells the paper.

As the government prepares the economy for EU membership, Czechs, it seems, are making their own preparations, hoping to be chosen to take up vacant spots at EU institutions. Lidove Noviny writes that some thirty-eight percent of Czechs who applied for jobs at EU institutions made it through the first round of job interviews in December. Compared to applicants from other post-Communist candidate countries, the Czechs have been the most successful as only 19% of the Hungarian applicants made it to the second round, 16.5% of the Poles, and 14.4% of the Slovaks. However, the paper notes that it is already clear that a number of openings reserved for Czechs will remain vacant as too few applicants made it to the second round.

The Defence Ministry has agreed that Russia pay part of its debt to the Czech Republic with the supply of Mi-24 helicopters instead of the transport aircraft that Russia initially promised, Pravo writes. Russia's debt dating from the Soviet era amounted to 3.6 billion US dollars. In October 2001, the Czech Republic sold two-thirds of it - 2.5 billion USD - to the private company, Falkon Capital, for some 22 percent of the debts' face value. After this transaction, Russia owed the Czech Republic around 1.1 billion USD, and entered in an agreement to repay it through the regular supply of goods, including military material. Part of the agreement was to deliver three Atonov An-70 transport aircraft to the Czech Air Force. However, Russia has not had the finances to acquire the aircraft. The Czech Defence Ministry now views the Mi-24 helicopters as a suitable solution that would not only benefit the Czechs but NATO as well, Pravo writes.

Lidove Noviny reports that the country's health services are shocked to find a clause permitting the use of cigarette vending machines in an anti-tobacco law, presented to parliament by Health Minister Marie Souckova. A ministry press officer explains that the machines would only be installed in places such as restaurants, bars, clubs, and wine cellars that are open to people 18 years and older and not in public spaces like train stations, as has been the case until now. But the paper says that health care workers point out that the country still lacks a law tough enough to stop minors from entering the places in question.

Lidove Noviny continues to look into the number of children under eighteen years who smoke and notes that the Czech Republic has one of the highest figures. The paper features a table with statistics from the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, showing that some 34% of under-aged boys smoke in the Czech Republic, compared to 15% that has been set as the world's average.