The Pirates are lying; they should apologize, said Prime Minister Petr Fiala (ODS) in a CNN Prima NEWS studio interview. He explained his decision to dismiss Pirate Party Minister for Regional Development Ivan Bartoš. He also denied that he had not been communicating with the Pirates, stating that, for example, he had called Jakub Michálek, the head of the Pirate Party's parliamentary club, eight times, but Michálek did not answer. "I called him about eight times, he didn't answer, he didn't return my calls. What are they complaining about? Is this serious behavior?" he said in the "Partie" program hosted by Terezie Tománková.

CNN Prima NEWS
Ve středu řeknu, jak to s námi bude dál, prozradil Fiala. Nevyloučil zrušení resortu pro legislativu
Nejpozději do středy chci, aby bylo jasno o podobě koalice. Do 14 dnů chci mít kabinet úplný a akceschopný, prozradil premiér Petr Fiala (ODS) v Partii Terezie Tománkové na CNN Prima NEWS. Také nevyloučil možnost, že by se při odchodu Pirátů z vlády zrušil post ministra pro legislativu, ministerstvo pro místní rozvoj a ministerstvo zahraničí by si mohly v takovém případě rozdělit hnutí STAN a ODS. Co se týká šéfa diplomacie Jana Lipavského, ten oznámil svůj záměr odejít od Pirátů. O svém osudu má jednat s premiérem v pondělí. „Zrovna na ministerstvu zahraničí je určitě dobrá kontinuita,“ nastínil Fiala v Partii.

The Prime Minister, in the CNN Prima NEWS broadcast, again described the fateful meeting where he was supposed to hear from Bartoš about the progress of digitalization in the construction permitting process. He was not pleased with the result. said Petr Fiala in the "Partie" program.

said Prime Minister Petr Fiala, defending his actions, which also drew criticism for being a "firing over the phone."

Prime Minister Petr Fiala strongly condemned the Pirate Party's press conference, where they spoke of "ODS godfathers" and "vile insinuations." He also criticized Jakub Michálek, the head of the Pirate Party's parliamentary club, for not answering his phone calls.

said a visibly angry Petr Fiala.

Despite all the verbal clashes, he is willing to negotiate with the Pirates. He still believes that they could remain in the government, although he does not understand the situation where Bartoš declares his departure from the government while the issue is still being debated on the Pirate Party's forum.

He also denied that alleged "godfathers" of the ODS or Zdeněk Zajíček, the head of the ICT Union and the Chamber of Commerce, were involved in the government crisis. He recalled that the government could have been formed without the Pirates, but he "brought them on board" and fought for them at Prague Castle with then-President Miloš Zeman.

"These are absolutely nonsensical statements. I feel disappointed. At the beginning, when I formed the government, I respected the agreements we had made beforehand. The Pirates had four votes in the Chamber of Deputies, and we didn't need them for most things. I fought a huge battle with Miloš Zeman to ensure that all the Pirate candidates were included. With those four MPs, they had three government members, a deputy speaker of the Chamber of Deputies, and several deputy ministers. I constantly defended the Pirates and treated them with utmost respect," said Prime Minister Petr Fiala.

He wants to have clarity about the shape of the coalition by Wednesday. He wants to have a complete and functional cabinet within 14 days, Prime Minister Petr Fiala (ODS) revealed in the "Partie" program on CNN Prima NEWS. He also did not rule out the possibility that the position of Minister for Legislation might be abolished if the Pirates leave the government, and that the Ministry of Regional Development and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs could be divided between the STAN and ODS parties. Regarding the head of diplomacy, Jan Lipavský, he announced his intention to leave the Pirates. He is scheduled to discuss his future with the Prime Minister on Monday. "There is certainly good continuity at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs," Fiala suggested in the program.

Petr Fiala said in the "Partie" program that he does not plan a major government reshuffle. "I want to have complete clarity by Wednesday. I will tell the public how things will be on Wednesday. I would like us to have a complete, functional, and effective government within 14 days," the Prime Minister said in the broadcast.

On Tuesday, the Prime Minister announced his decision to propose to President Petr Pavel that Ivan Bartoš (Pirates), the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Regional Development, be dismissed due to the failure to digitize the building permitting process. Bartoš described the Prime Minister's move as a betrayal, as he had been negotiating with him just a few hours earlier, and according to the outgoing leader of the Pirates, Fiala had not indicated anything of the sort. Later, the Minister-President informed him that the Pirates as a whole were leaving the cabinet.

Fiala also sees no reason for the coalition in the Chamber of Deputies to request a vote of confidence after the Pirates potentially leave the government. The reason is simple: nothing will change in the government's agenda, and the coalition MPs will still have a majority. The coalition has 108 votes in the lower house of parliament, and 104 without the Pirates.

"The government's program declaration, with which we obtained the vote of confidence, remains in effect," said Petr Fiala on CNN Prima NEWS. He would consider such a move a show for the opposition.

A decision about Lipavský will be made on Monday

The Pirate Minister of Foreign Affairs, Jan Lipavský, will discuss his future in the cabinet with Fiala on Monday. There have been speculations in the media that he could remain in the government as an independent, representing another government party. "There is certainly good continuity at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. We will be considering whether this is a viable path for Jan Lipavský, for me, and for the parties in the governing coalition," said Petr Fiala in the "Partie" program. He again described Lipavský as a good minister.

The Prime Minister also said that on Thursday, he informed the Pirates that he could imagine several scenarios. The first is that they will not leave the government. The second is that the coalition agreement will be amended, and even if the Pirate Party leaves the cabinet, the program points will still be implemented, and the Pirates will somehow support the government. The third, which the Pirates are now leaning towards, is that they will become a radical opposition and deny what they have been doing in the government for the past three years.

Občanská demokratická strana
Petr Fiala – ODS – Občanská demokratická strana
Profil

Prime Minister of the Czech Republic
Chairman of the ODS party

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