| Public Affairs Věci veřejné |
|
|---|---|
| Leader | Radek John |
| Founded | 2001 |
| Headquarters | Štefánikova 23/203, Prague 5 |
| Ideology | Conservative liberalism Direct democracy Anti-corruption |
| Political position | Centre, centre-right |
| Official colours | Light blue |
| Chamber of Deputies |
24 / 200
|
| Senate |
0 / 81
|
| European Parliament |
0 / 22
|
| Regional councils |
0 / 675
|
| Local councils |
313 / 62,178
|
| Website | |
| http://www.veciverejne.cz/ | |
| Politics of the Czech Republic Political parties Elections |
|
Public Affairs (Czech: Věci veřejné), abbreviated to VV, is a conservative liberal political party in the Czech Republic.[1][2][3] Led by anti-establishment investigative journalist and writer Radek John,[4] its main platform is transparency and opposing political corruption. It has 24 seats in the Chamber of Deputies.
Besides opposing corruption, the party is fiscally conservative.[5] It has a number of right-wing populist policies,[6] without opposing immigrants,[4] but a proportion of its small membership is closer to the centre-left.[7] The party is interested in direct democracy – the members of the party can change the course of the party by internet referendums.
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Founded in 2001, the party has concentrated on local politics in Prague, particularly Prague 1,[8] for most of its existence.[9] In June 2009, Radek John was recruited as its chairman,[8] and it emerged in late 2009 as a contender in the 2010 election, polling above the 5% threshold for winning seats, and above the KDU-ČSL and Greens on occasion. John competed with Karel Schwarzenberg for the title of the country's most popular politician.[10]
In the election, it received 10.9% of the vote, easily clearing the 5% threshold, and won 24 seats. The party is currently in a governing coalition with the country's two other centre-right parties: the Civic Democratic Party and TOP 09.
In April 2011, Vít Bárta, a leader of the party and Czech Minister of Transport, was accused of bribery by his colleagues from Public Affairs, deputies Jaroslav Škárka, Stanislav Huml, and Kristýna Kočí. The deputies were subsequently expelled from the party. The incident caused serious problems in the Czech government coalition.[11]
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