Lower house approves tax bill tied to confidence vote

The Czech lower house approved a government tax bill in its final reading on Wednesday. Prime Minister Petr Nečas had tied a vote of confidence in his coalition government to the vote on a raft of tax changes, which includes an increase in VAT. The bill is crucial to the passing of the budget for next year, and the finance minister had drafted an alternative budget in case it failed.

Its approval was complicated by the position of a group of rebels within the prime minister’s own Civic Democrats. However, the rebellion fizzled out on Tuesday, when three of the deputies in question resigned their mandates and two said they would back the bill.

Author: Ian Willoughby