The Czech state cannot afford any lower price caps for electricity and gas, Prime Minister Petr Fiala said during the Otázky Václava Moravce show on Czech television (ČT).
“No, that can’t happen. The ceiling is set responsibly after a thorough analysis of what we can afford,” Fiala said as he rejected lowering the cap on energy prices during the broadcast.
At the same time, he admitted that it is not an ideal price.
“It’s a ceiling where the government guarantees you won’t pay more. People feel not only high prices but also uncertainty. We therefore assured them that they will not pay more,” said the prime minister.
For electricity, people now pay a maximum of 6 crowns per kWh without distribution fees. For gas, it is 3 crowns per kWh.
“We are not out of the crisis. We don’t know how long the conflict will last, but we must get rid of our dependence on Russian fossil resources,” the prime minister added.
Fiala wants Jurečka to continue to lead the ministry of the environment
Fiala also stated in the program that he will ask the Minister of Labor and Social Affairs Marian Jurečka to temporarily perform the function of environment minister until the end of the year when he will be ready to propose Petr Hladík as minister.
“I will ask Jurečka to perform the function until the end of the year. Then I am ready, if no new facts emerge, to propose him (Petr Hladík) to the president,” Fiala said on ČT.
“I want to propose a candidate who will be able to devote himself fully to the management of this important department, and not to explaining ambiguities,” added the prime minister.
The appointment of the former deputy mayor of Brno as a minister was complicated by the criminal case of the allocation of city apartments in Brno. Due to the case, the police also intervened in Hladík’s office but did not charge him with anything. Hladík also stated several times that he cooperated with the police.
