Ústí refuses to pay EU fine

The Ústí nad Labem regional council has decided not to pay its share of a 2.6-billion-crown fine that the European Commission imposed on the Ústí and Karlovy Vary regions. The regional governments were fined for problems with some of the EU funding allocated through an operational program by the regions. The Ústí council said on Monday that it is not responsible for the mishandling of grants, and the regional governor Oldřich Bubeníček said last month that the Finance Ministry should pay for at least half of the fine.