Senate passes austerity measures

The Senate has passed the four legislative bills that make up the government's 2011 austerity package, meaning the cutbacks only require President Václav Klaus' signature to become law.

The opposition Social Democrats (ČSSD) have vowed to take a case to the Constitutional Court over the state of legislative emergency that allowed bills to be fast-tracked through Parliament without the readings normally required before a new law can be passed.

The votes Nov. 12 came on the second to last day of the outgoing Senate term, in which the government coalition of the Civic Democrats (ODS), TOP 09 and Public Affairs (VV) party held a majority.

Since Nov. 14, the left-wing ČSSD has had an upper-house majority after it came out on top in Oct. 22-23's election involving a third of the Senate's 81 seats.

ČSSD acting leader Bohuslav Sobotka says the government wants to circumvent the election results, and told the Czech News Agency his party would lodge its case after the bills become law.

Prime Minister Petr Nečas (ODS) has said the declaring of a legislative emergency was an appropriate step in view of the economic damage the Czech Republic could face. 

Nečas argued the country could have seen its credit rating drop and its debt repayments and budget deficit increase if the measures were not passed in time for them to take effect in January.

The austerity package of spending cuts and tax changes is aimed at generating savings of 35 billion Kč to keep the state budget deficit at 135 billion Kč next year.

Cuts in a number of social welfare payments, a new flood tax and cuts in funding for political parties are among the measures passed. 

One of the biggest cuts is a 10 percent reduction in the public wage budget for next year. The Czech-Moravian Confederation of Trade Unions, a public sector union with 600,000 members, has already said it will hold a one-day strike Dec. 8 in protest of the move.

Without the state of emergency, the newly elected Senate could have vetoed the budget, although the government-controlled Chamber of Deputies would still have the final say and be able to override the veto.

Bill Lehane can be reached at
blehane@praguepost.com