Miloslav Vlcek elected speaker

Social Democrat MP Miloslav Vlcek has been elected speaker of the lower house by a majority of MPs present. On Monday, he received 174 out of a possible 197 votes. Earlier, Mr Vlcek pledged publicly that his holding of the post will only be temporary, part of an agreement designed to break more than two months of deadlock on the Czech political scene. The centre-right parties agreed to support his candidacy on the condition that he would resign rather than take advantage of any opportunity to select the country's next prime minister. Mr Vlcek's election should now open the door for the outgoing cabinet to resign. That will allow the president to name a new prime minister, in all likelihood Civic Democrat Mirek Topolanek, who has been negotiating support for a minority Civic Democrat government. Mr Topolanek expressed hope on Monday that he might be named on two days' time, after the outgoing government tenders its resignation.

Author: Jan Velinger