Public Affairs leaves coalition

The Public Affairs party has ended their coalition agreement with the Civic Democrats and TOP 09. The leaders of the three governing parties originally agreed to officially end their cooperation on Friday, with Public Affairs saying they would continue to support the government’s austerity measures. However, Public Affairs chairman Radek John now says that the Civic Democrats nullified the agreement already by seeking defectors in his party. He also withdrew unconditional support for the agreed austerity measures, saying the party would now be in “constructive opposition”. Prime Minister Petr Nečas said the about-face showed that it was impossible to govern with Public Affairs, which he called untrustworthy, irrational and hysterical.