Czech news in brief for November 7: Tuesday's top headlines

The Ministry of the Environment plans to establish a deposit system for PET (polyethylene terephthalate) bottles and cans around mid-2025, involving approximately 11,000 collection points at shops, gas stations, and online stores. The proposed deposit is CZK 4 , CZK 1 more than glass bottles. The plan also covers previously uncharged waste, including advertising leaflets.

The ministry assures that this won't negatively impact municipal budgets or disrupt current waste sorting practices. The goal is to enhance resource utilization while complementing the existing waste sorting system and ensuring municipal compensation. Municipalities can also benefit from handling fees at collection points and uncollected advance payments.

A new exhibition has opened in Prague commemorating 300 years of the city's first permanent oil lantern lighting. Located on Mariánské náměstí, in front of Prague City Hall, it's open to the public until Nov. 15. The exhibit showcases the historical evolution of street lighting through illustrations, photos, and facts. 

It includes functional installations with various lamp styles from the 1960s to the present, lit daily from sunset to midnight. This event sheds light on Prague's unique character and its lamp heritage. Billboards and signposts provide information about the history of street lights in Prague.

Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavský and his Austrian counterpart expressed solidarity with Ukraine and Israel after recent attacks amid both countries’ respective wars. They agreed that both nations have the right to self-defense. The Czech minister said the world is facing a global confrontation at present, and thus it is important to share values and support a rules-based order.

Austrian Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg warned of growing crises not only in Ukraine and the Middle East, but also in other regions. He also expressed concern over rising anti-Semitism in Europe. Both said humanitarian aid is needed in Gaza but must not reach Hamas, which they view as a terrorist group.

Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, is launching a subscription service for users in the Czech Republic and across the European Union to eliminate ads and data collection for personalized advertising. The monthly fee is EUR 10 (around CZK 245 plus tax) to remove ads on the website, or EUR 13 (about CZK 320 plus tax) for ad removal on Android and iOS mobile platforms.

Until March 1, 2024, the subscription covers all user accounts, but thereafter, additional accounts will incur extra fees. Meta's move aligns with European regulations, respecting users' privacy while offering an ad-free experience.

In Prague, a Czech collector has made a record purchase, acquiring one of only 13 bottles of Louis XIII cognac from the Le Mathusalem edition by Remy Martin for a staggering CZK 4.1 million, the most expensive spirit bottle ever sold in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. The anonymous collector's impressive collection of noble spirits is valued in the tens of millions of crowns.

The sale highlights the growing interest in premium spirits as investments, with alcohol serving as an effective hedge against inflation, typically appreciating at an annual rate of 5 to 10 percent. Louis XIII cognac comprises a blend of 1,200 different cognacs, ranging from 40 to 100 years old, and is made from grapes sourced from France's Grande Champagne region.

Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavský, speaking at the Vienna Diplomatic Academy, expressed concerns about Russia's imperialist ambitions and their threat to Czech independence and sovereignty, drawing on historical context. He introduced the Czech government's updated security strategy, which identifies Russia as deliberately destabilizing the Czech Republic politically, economically, and socially. 

The strategy also highlights China's impact on international order, negatively affecting Euro-Atlantic security. Lipavský emphasized that the EU and NATO are crucial for Czech security, and he stressed the importance of Ukraine's potential accession to these organizations as a security guarantee, emphasizing support for Ukraine's territorial integrity and sovereignty.

The Czech Chamber of Deputies suggested today that the unexpected cancellation of Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala's visit to Nigeria – meant to take place this week – is reportedly linked to the Czech government's support for Israel in the ongoing Israel-Palestine war. 

African countries are divided in their opinion about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. "If support for Palestine prevails in one of the countries, and Czechia’s representatives are photographed at pro-Israeli demonstrations, that county’s attitude is understandable. They do not want to have their security situation worsened because of the visit," said member of parliament for the opposition ANO party.

Health Minister Vlastimil Válek has said that Czech doctors are advocating for the incorporation of physical exercise as a treatment component, which could be funded through health insurance companies' prevention funds. This is partly because obesity-related treatment costs constitute a significant portion of healthcare expenditure in the Czech Republic, where nearly 20 percent of the population is obese, and 75 percent is overweight. 

Collaborating with physiotherapists and nutritional therapists, sports doctors can prescribe physical activities to enhance fitness, ultimately leading to improved health outcomes. This approach is expected to save both healthcare and social support resources, although it is currently in the early stages of discussion before potential inclusion in public health insurance coverage.

Doctors at Motol University Hospital in Prague have successfully transplanted the heart of a four-month-old infant diagnosed with cardiomyopathy. This rare heart defect caused rapid organ failure, requiring mechanical heart support for 34 days before the transplant. The operation, lasting over eight hours, involved complex logistics and the use of a special transport case for the donor heart.

Despite the challenges, the surgery was deemed a success, with a favorable prognosis. In the Czech Republic, 34 heart transplants have been performed this year, a decrease from the 81 recorded in the previous year, as the nation faces difficulties in obtaining organs, especially for young children.

Belgian-born action star Jean-Claude Van Damme is set to perform at Prague's SaSaZu club on Nov. 7 during the Night with a Legend fan event. Czech hockey icon Jaromir Jagr will join him as the guest host, along with actor Marek Vašut.

Van Damme and Jagr share a connection through their involvement in the 1995 film Sudden Death, set in the Pittsburgh Penguins' arena during the NHL finals. Van Damme expressed his admiration for the stars in Pittsburgh but admitted his lack of hockey skills. Jagr plans to ask unique questions during the event, promising an entertaining evening for fans.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, along with state premiers, has agreed to continue border controls with the Czech Republic, Poland, and Switzerland. These checks, reinstated on October 16, will remain limited to selected locations, such as the highway between Prague and Dresden on the Czech border. Additionally, the meeting resulted in agreements on the distribution of costs for asylum seekers and the acceleration of asylum procedures.

A funding proposal from Chancellor Scholz of EUR 7,500 (CZK 180,000) annually per refugee was offered in place of the regions' suggestion of an automatic mechanism based on migrant numbers for the release of federal budget funds for asylum procedures. The duration of the border controls has not yet been specified.

Czech Health Minister Vlastimil Válek said that acute care in hospitals should remain unaffected, but certain planned surgeries could face limitations in December due to the upcoming doctor protests. These doctors have withdrawn from overtime work agreements and are calling for changes to the recently amended Labor Code, which increased the maximum voluntary overtime hours and disrupted the 24-hour hospital shift.

Approximately 6,000 of the 13,000 doctors in Czech hospitals have rejected overtime work. Valek is planning to propose an amendment to the health insurance law that addresses these issues, aiming for approval before the end of the current term.

The insolvency administrator of Sberbank CZ, Jiřina Lužová, has sought approval from the bankruptcy court for a CZK 57 billion (approximately USD 2.5 billion) partial payout to around 16,000 creditors. Pending court approval, all creditor groups may receive 95 percent of their claims by year-end, with payouts set to start in mid-December 2023.

The Financial Market Guarantee System, individuals, and small to medium-sized enterprises will receive 100 percent of their claims, while large enterprises and municipalities will get at least 95 percent. Sberbank CZ declared bankruptcy in August 2022, following the Czech National Bank's license revocation due to deposit outflows during the Russian invasion of Ukraine.