17.12.2020
Office of the Government
The government will submit a request to the Chamber of Deputies for the state of emergency to be extended another 30 days until 22 January. This request was discussed and approved by the Andrej Babiš cabinet at a special meeting Thursday 17 December 2020. It also approved several clarifications to the existing crisis measures and agreed to extend the subsidy programme for supporting people working in culture.
The number of newly diagnosed patients with COVID-19 has been rising slightly in the Czech Republic in recent days and because of this stricter measures will take effect across the whole country starting tomorrow based on the fourth level of the Anti-Epidemic System (PES). In order for these measures to stay in effect beyond 23 December, when the current state of emergency ends, the government will ask the Chamber of Deputies to approve an extension for another 30 days until 22 January.
The government approved the Ministry of Industry and Trade’s proposal for continuing the subsidy programme COVID – Culture. This programme is meant to help businesses in the cultural sector, such as organisers of cultural events, service and technical companies, agencies, as well as individual artists and groups, to make it through the crisis period when they are still losing their income due to anti-epidemic restrictions. For this reason the Ministry will issue a third call under this programme in January. Under this the state will once again pay out a lump sum of up to CZK 10 million to affected entities. The government will free up another CZK 1 billion from the state budget to continue with the programme. Find the details in the press release of the Ministry of Industry and Trade (in Czech language).
The government also adopted two clarifications to aspects of crisis measures currently in effect. In order to dispel any doubts, all trips to purchase goods or services or provide services are now explicitly allowed, which is also true if the person in question is going to make purchases for another person. The second adjustment allows for driving schools to continue operating.
Autor: Office of the Government