Government reshuffle in the Czech Republic

Czech Prime Minister Petr Nečas has drawn a line under the government crisis that had burdened Czech politics for several weeks by reshuffling the government. The most important changes to the cabinet in Prague include the appointments of Jan Kubice as interior minister and Radek Šmerda as transport minister, which were approved by President Václav Klaus. Yet shadows still hang over the government and its members.

Prime Minister Nečas announced further changes to the Czech cabinet for the summer. The new transport minister, Radek Šmerda, succeeds Vít Bárta, whose deputy he had previously been. Bárta is considered one of those responsible for the government crisis: Bárta, an influential politician in the ruling Public Affairs (VV) party, is alleged to have bribed members of his own party. There were also allegations that Bárta had shown favoritism toward the security firm ABL. He founded ABL and transferred its management to his brother after embarking on a political career.

Alongside Bárta, Czech Interior Minister Radek John also had to step down. John, a former TV journalist, is moving to a newly created post: from now on, he will serve as deputy prime minister for the fight against corruption. His successor, Jan Kubice, spent twelve years in an elite police unit tasked with combating organized crime. His famous “Kubice Report” from 2006 described links between politicians and organized crime in the Czech Republic. The report remains highly controversial to this day and was inadvertently leaked to the Czech public at the time.