The impasse that’s resulted from Czech parliamentary elections held in November should be on display today when a minority government cobbled together by the winner, the ANO party, calls for a vote of confidence. All signs point to the vote going badly for the government, whose leader Andrej Babiš is suspected of misappropriated EU funds for a project called “The Stork’s Nest” outside Prague. Police have been investigating the scandal, but Babiš is not formally under investigation, not least because he has the immunity from prosecution afforded by the country’s constitution. As it happens, ANO and a far-right party now control the parliament’s Immunity Committee, which is unlikely to allow Babiš to be placed under investigation. In an unusual step that’s being criticized as opportunistic and irregular by opposition politicians, Czech president Miloš Zeman is expected to give a speech in parliament in support of Babiš. Zeman, whose health has come under intense scrutiny, is hoping to win a second term in office through elections that begin on Friday.
