Aktualne.cz reports that Prague politicians will be discussing a proposal by the Pirate party on Friday to put an extra tax on unused flats in the city. They argue it would provide an economic incentive for people to use the space, providing a greater level of residential supply at a time when a lack of living space is pushing prices up astronomically. The city’s other parties are claiming the idea comes straight out of the Communist era and that the state shouldn’t be in the business of telling citizens what to do with their private property. The Pirates suggested that in order to get an idea of how many flats are actually empty, the city could work with energy suppliers to determine this figure. But opponents of the idea described the idea as spying on people.
