News & Events
Daniel Münich on Loosening Fiscal Rules
In an interview with Radio Prague International, IDEA’s Daniel Münich discusses the government’s plan to loosen fiscal rules and the risks it poses to Czech public finances (July 31, 2026)
Radio Prague International: One thing you are against is the possibility of increasing expenditure by 10 percent on the basis of a decision by the State Security Council. But in these uncertain times, wouldn’t an extraordinary security situation justify the change the government is pushing for?
“The Security Council is nothing other than part of the government, so in other words this would just be cutting out Parliament. And it can’t be that way. The government should always go to the lower house and ask for changes in the original budget, which can be done very quickly. So this is just a way of getting rid of Parliament.
The minister of finance, Alena Schillerová, says the government have no alternative to loosening these rules, which she calls a severe constraint on the Czech economy.
“Of course that’s not true. There is a very clear, very simple alternative. And that is to increase taxation on incomes. In 2021 there was a huge decrease that was originally planned to be temporary, but it has remained there until now. The tax cut at that time in current prices was CZK 130 billion, which is quite a lot of money, and more than the government needs now to finance all its promises and obligations.”
Some people may say that if this bill is passed and if the government then acts in an irresponsible manner, voters can punish the government – they can vote the government out or not vote for those parties again.
“This government will be there until 2029, but fiscal problems, the payment of debt, will show up later on. So the only case in which this government would be held to account by the public would be if some kind of external crisis occurred that would require much higher spending, which would impose an additional burden on the public finances.”
In any case, the government are planning to override the president’s veto. The opposition say they will take the matter to the Constitutional Court. How do you think this will end?
Cognitive Abilities are Not Enough: Social and Emotional Competencies of Czech Students
The policy brief draws attention to a fundamental yet often overlooked aspect of education: the social and emotional skills of young people. According to the latest international PISA assessment, Czech students performed poorly in these skills. What lies behind the low level of social and emotional skills among Czech 15-year-olds, and what consequences could this have for their future educational achievement and success later in life?
Read more …Cognitive Abilities are Not Enough: Social and Emotional Competencies of Czech Students
CERGE-EI Statement on the Attack against IDEA’s Independent Study on Pension Funds
23 July, 2026
CERGE-EI, a joint workplace of Charles University’s Center for Economic Research and Graduate Education and the Economics Institute of the Czech Academy of Sciences, which includes the Institute for Democracy and Economic Analysis (IDEA), rejects the attack by the Czech Association of Pension Companies on the study Pension Fund Clients Trapped by Low Returns and High Fees, which examines the third pillar of the pension system.
The study was prepared using available data and economic methods commonly applied in international research. It also underwent an external peer-review process involving Czech and international experts. It aims to contribute to an expert debate on how to make the Czech pension system more effective, for the benefit of its millions of participants and the efficient use of public funds.
The planned reform of supplementary pension savings, for which the study has served as one of the supporting documents, could fundamentally change the economics of the entire sector to the benefit of clients. This makes the manner in which the Czech Association of Pension Companies is attempting to discredit the study all the more serious.
“We do not regard this approach as a standard academic dispute, but as an unacceptable attempt to exert pressure on an independent research institution and divert attention from the substance of the problem. It is an example of exceptionally poor practice in public debate: instead of engaging in a substantive discussion about the system’s impact on clients, it seeks to discredit the research and undermine its legitimacy,” said Marek Kapička, Director of CERGE-EI.
“The central issue in the current debate is not the existence of a single study. It is whether a more effective system will leave Czech citizens hundreds of thousands or even millions of crowns better off in retirement, or whether a significant portion of their savings will be absorbed by the fees and profits of pension companies,” added Filip Pertold, one of the study’s authors.
“The approach taken by the Czech Association of Pension Companies displays features of a strategy that has been extensively documented in the academic literature in other comparable cases. Its essence is not an open discussion of unwelcome findings, but the systematic questioning of methodology, demands for further analyses, and an emphasis on supposedly unique circumstances that are presented as obstacles to change. The result is often the delay, dilution, or complete obstruction of a policy decision that would affect the economic interests of the sector concerned,” Pertold said.
“The debate should focus on improving the system for its clients, rather than questioning the analysis and attacking its authors in an effort to protect vested economic interests,” added Lukáš Nádvorník, a co-author of the study.
Further information
https://idea.cerge-ei.cz/studies/klienti-penzijnich-fondu-v-pasti-nizkych-vynosu-a-vysokych-poplatku
https://idea.cerge-ei.cz/files/IDEA_Studie_01_2026_Penzijni_fondy_0106.pdf
https://idea.cerge-ei.cz/seznam-publikaci/otazky-argumenty-a-odpovedi
https://idea.cerge-ei.cz/images/studie/2026/Penzijni_fondy_promograf_0106.png
AI Supported Digital School Choice
The CERGE-EI IDEA Think Tank and the RSJ Foundation organized a public lecture and discussion by Professor Christopher Neilson - AI Supported Digital School Choice.
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