Prague, Nov 10 (CTK) – The Prague coalition of ANO, the Social Democrats (CSSD) and the Three-party Coalition, comprised of the Greens (SZ), Mayors and Independents (STAN) and Christian Democrats (KDU-CSL), has definitively ended, CSSD representatives told reporters after a coalition meeting yesterday.
The Social Democrats said they had lost trust in the Three-party Coalition due to their members’ voting at the Prague Assembly’s meeting last week.
“They voted contrary to all agreements. This is a regular divorce,” CSSD assembly-member group leader Miloslav Ludvik said.
Three-party Coalition leader Petr Stepanek confirmed it.
The coalition crisis was triggered by the Prague Assembly meeting in October where four of the 11 councillors, Matej Stropnicky (Greens), Michal Hasek (ANO), Hana Novakova and Irena Ropkova (both CSSD), were dismissed even by the votes of the Prague coalition members, and their powers were divided among the remaining councillors.
The CSSD representatives left yesterday´s meeting early.
“We have left the talks yesterday since our trust in the Three-party Coalition reached the ground zero and under these circumstances we cannot imagine further cooperation,” CSSD Prague assembly-members´ group Karel Brezina told CTK.
“Our words that the coalition is dead have come true,” Stepanek said, adding that the councillors for the Three-party Coalition would keep their posts for the time being.
Both the CSSD and the Three-party Coalition will be negotiating with other political parties at the Prague Assembly, their representatives said.
The CSSD agreed a few weeks ago that it would like to cooperate with ANO in the formation of the Prague Council.
Stepanek said the Three-party Coalition would meet the opposition Pirates, TOP 09 and the Civic Democrats (ODS).
ANO representatives have not commented on the split yet.
ANO, which won the elections in Prague last autumn, together with the CSSD and the Three-party Coalition, have the narrowest possible majority of 33 seats in the 65-seat Prague Assembly.
ANO has 17 mandates, TOP 09 and Independents have 12, while the Three-party Coalition, the ODS and the CSSD have eight seats each. There are also four members of the Pirate Party, four Communists (KSCM) and four independents in the assembly.
