Bárta and Škárka could lose committee seats

Prague, April 29 (CTK) - Czech lawmakers Vit Barta (Public Affairs, VV) and Jaroslav Skarka (formerly VV, now unaffiliated), may lose membership of committees and commissions of the Chamber of Deputies, Miroslava Nemcova, chairwoman of the lower house of parliament, said on Czech Television (CT) yesterday.

Nemcova said in the Questions of Vaclav Moravec that Barta and Skarka, convicted of bribery and cheating, respectively, should have given up their mandates even though the verdict is not yet valid.

Since they have not done so, the Chamber of Deputies can only strip them of committee membership.

The court gave Barta a suspended sentence of 18 months with a 30-month probation for having bribed fellow party members in mid-April. Skarka was sentenced to three years in prison for having cheated Barta.

Skarka has already stepped down as chairman of the committee that is to check the financial management of the Supreme Audit Office (NKU).

Barta is a member of the budget and organisational committees. Skarka is deputy chairman of the control and petitions committees and a member of the budget committee.

Nemcova said the leadership of the Chamber of Deputies is not yet discussing a new candidate for the post of the house's deputy chairperson that was left by Katerina Klasnova, deputy chairwoman of Public Affairs (VV) during the recent government crisis.

The VV went into opposition after the crisis.

Nemcova and opposition Social Democrat (CSSD) chairman Bohuslav Sobotka agreed that the Chamber of Deputies can manage its work with the two remaining deputy chairpersons - Lubomir Zaoralek (CSSD) and Vlasta Parkanova (TOP 09).