Czechia – Government survives no-confidence motion ahead of key elections

PRAGUE, October 1 /ATSH-DPA/ – The no-confidence motion against the government of Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis did not secure the necessary votes in Parliament, allowing the government to remain in office. In the vote, 83 deputies voted in favor of the motion, while at least 101 votes from the Chamber of Deputies’ 200 members were needed to bring down the government.

The debate before the vote was marked by sharp clashes between the government and the opposition, ahead of local elections and Senate elections to be held on October 9 and 10. The motion was submitted by 92 deputies from liberal and conservative parties. They accused the government of increasing public debt and warned of a very grave financial situation in the country. The opposition also criticized the government for not doing enough to strengthen security in the face of threats linked to Russia.

Prime Minister Babis accused his opponents of being motivated only by opposition to him. According to him, the opposition has only one aim, what he described as “anti-Babis”, and is not willing to listen to the government’s arguments.

Babiš, 72, has since last December led a governing coalition made up of his right-wing populist party, ANO, and two small far-right parties. Born in Slovakia, Babis is a politician, businessman and economist and is considered among the richest people in Czechia.

The local elections are considered the first important test of the level of support the governing coalition has in public opinion. In these elections, the composition of more than 6,000 municipal and local councils will be determined. In parallel, as happens every two years, one third of the members of the Senate, the upper house of the Czech Parliament, will also be elected. The Senate takes part in the law-approval process and can block changes to the Constitution.