Prime minister promises prisons more money

Prime Ministr Mirek Topolanek has promised Czech prisons more money in the coming year. On a visit to the Plzen-Bory prison on Tuesday the PM said Czech prisons could be given 100 million crowns more in 2008, getting a total of 440 million. Prison authorities say, however, that Czech prisons would need investments worth billions of crowns to reach European standards. Prison facilities are overcrowded and government officials are considering the introduction of alternative punishments.