Defence. The Coalition will implement defence policy in close interdepartmental cooperation so that the Czech Army’s defence capacity meets the requirements of national security interests both in the Czech Republic and beyond, in close cooperation with NATO allies. The Czech Republic’s NATO membership constitutes an essential pillar of its security and defence policy. The Coalition will support the further development of the European Union’s defence capabilities, particularly as part of EU civil crisis management capacity. In addition to building defence capacity, the Ministry of Defence will place a stress on the completion and optimization of the Czech Republic’s Integrated Rescue System, with maximum emphasis on protecting the lives and health of the population and property in case of natural disaster or technological accident. In the context of the above objectives, and following approval of the new NATO Strategic Concept by heads of state and government at the Lisbon Summit in autumn this year, the Coalition will amend the system of national strategic documents – the Security Strategy of the Czech Republic – and will subsequently develop a new Defence Strategy of the Czech Republic. The Ministry of Defence will accelerate work on the adoption of a new service law (the Act on the Service of Professional Soldiers), which will create conditions for the stabilization of personnel in the armed forces, codify the conditions for their career prospects and create conditions for adequate social security. The Ministry of Defence, in accordance with the current construction requirements of the armed forces and with regard to source opportunities, will optimize the organizational structure of the Ministry of Defence and the system for the command and control of the armed forces at all levels. The resulting structures and systems, in terms of their essential scope and functionality, will be consistent with the requirements arising from our NATO membership and generally binding legislation of the Czech Republic, and must be proportionate to the current size of the Czech Army. Structural changes in the Czech Army must be geared towards national military policy ambitions, particularly with regard to their actually envisaged scope and method predicted for the deployment of forces. The Ministry of Defence will ensure a gradual increase in deployable forces in line with obligations stemming from NATO membership. The Coalition respects the fact that, as a member of NATO and the EU, the Czech Republic must bear an appropriate share of responsibility for the fulfilment of decisions taken collectively. In this regard, the Ministry of Defence will develop, and the Czech Government will subsequently propose to the Czech Parliament for approval, plans for the deployment of the Czech Army’s forces and resources in foreign operations and missions to a scope and extent corresponding to the Czech Republic’s due share in those common activities. These proposals will be submitted for a period of two to three years. The Coalition, with the knowledge that the Czech Republic has only one set of military forces and resources, will seek the closest possible cooperation between NATO and the EU in the management of military operations and civilian missions and in the building of the necessary military capabilities. The Coalition will promote a complementary approach to the building of the military capabilities of both organizations, while ensuring maximum effectiveness in the spending of national and collective resources, the harmonization of their efforts and, in particular, the elimination of duplication. The Ministry of Defence will complete the restructuring and supplementation of the Czech Army with personnel and a comprehensive system for their preparation, training and education in order to increase the quality of human resources in general and to deploy well equipped and trained compact, mostly organic units to foreign operations and missions, complemented, depending on the nature of the tasks to be performed, by the deployment of specialized teams. The Coalition will not allow the slightest flagging of our intention to honour our allied commitments, particularly with regard to the Czech Republic’s participation in NATO operations. The Ministry of Defence will make the medium-term plan of necessary acquisitions of armaments and rearmaments in particular more precise and more viable so that all expenditure in this regard is effective, predictable and controllable. The Coalition is committed to enabling the Ministry of Defence to make direct purchases without intermediaries. The Ministry of Defence will periodically submit to the competent committee of the Chamber of Deputies of the Czech Parliament summary information on public procurement on the same expanded scale as this requirement has currently been set for the Czech Government (Government Resolution No 158/2010). The Coalition will responsibly and seriously approach the safeguarding of the defence and security interests of the Czech Republic as a Member State of NATO with continuous pressure to eliminate any inefficient spending, and will seek to reconcile expenditure and actual needs in this area. For the 2011 financial year, the Coalition has agreed to reduce the budget heading of the Ministry of Defence by CZK 2.1 billion; by 31 December 2010, a detailed analysis of the Ministry’s spending patterns will be conducted in order to identify further savings for the 2012–2014 period. The Coalition, recognizing the increasing interpenetration of internal and external security risks, will implement the defence policy in close interdepartmental cooperation between the competent Ministries and other central administrative authorities. We will submit a law on lobbying aimed at enhancing the transparency of the relationship between politicians and officials on the one hand and bodies specializing in lobbying on the other. This law will include definitions of lobbying, lobbying contact and lobbyists and the mandatory registration of lobbyists. The register of lobbyists will be accessible on the Internet, and penalties will be set for failure to comply with the conditions laid down by the law. We will submit an amendment to the Constitution and an amendment to the Supreme Audit Office Act permitting checks on the handling of the assets of local governments and other public bodies. We will propose a method for monitoring the handling of the assets of legal entities controlled by the state or local authorities. The Government will carry out periodic checks, once a year, on the implementation of corrective measures resulting from SAO audit findings. We will propose the establishment of a central register of notifications under the Conflict of Interest Act in order to facilitate public access to this information through the Data Box Information System on a form to be published by the Ministry of the Interior on the Internet. We propose establishing the obligation for public authorities to draw up and publish their own code of ethics. We will push for state officials appointed to the boards of companies in which the state has a shareholding to be selected according to their expertise, and for their remuneration for work in such bodies to be published. We will prepare an amendment to legislation so that local government officials appointed to the boards of companies in which the local government has a shareholding to be selected according to their expertise, and for their remuneration for work in such bodies to be published. We will refine the concept of cooperating defendant (crown witness) under Section 178a of the Rules of Criminal Procedure and related provisions so that, particularly in serious cases of organized crime, complete impunity can be arranged in exceptional circumstances. We will use the concept of reliability tests under Section 107 of the Police Act to set similar tests for other persons working for public authorities. We will arrange for the publication of a guide for those who encounter a corrupt offer and are interested in cooperating in the detection of such crime with law enforcement agencies, including the protection of the notifier. We will submit an amendment to the Criminal Code tightening the penalties for corruption among officials (disqualification, forfeiture of property). We will introduce mandatory corruption impact assessments (CIA) as part of bills or amendments placed in the legislative process. We will conduct this assessment retroactively for selected laws. Each year, we will review legislation with a regulatory or bureaucratic burden or with a corruption risk with a view to repealing or modifying such legislation in order to reduce that risk or burden. We will submit, for public comment, a proposal to incorporate the right of citizens and companies to protection against bureaucracy and corruption. We will arrange, by way of a Government resolution, for the publication of Government voting, by name, on matters where the Government takes decisions on the management of state property or on public procurement, subsidies, grants or other aid from the national budget, with the exception of matters to be discussed within the scope of the Act on the Protection of Classified Information. After adopting this resolution, the Government will immediately call on regional and municipal councils to accept a similar procedure. After discussion with the Association of Regions of the Czech Republic, the Union of Towns and Municipalities of the Czech Republic, and the Association of Local Governments, we will present amendments to the relevant laws so that voting by regional and municipal councils is published, by name, in matters concerning the management of local government property or public procurement, subsidies, grants or other aid from the local government budget, with the exception of matters to be discussed within the scope of the Act on the Protection of Classified Information.
Appears in 1 contract
Sources: Coalition Agreement
Defence. The Coalition will implement defence policy in close interdepartmental cooperation so that the Czech Army’s defence capacity meets the requirements of national security interests both in the Czech Republic and beyond, in close cooperation with NATO allies. The Czech Republic’s NATO membership constitutes an essential pillar of its security and defence policy. The Coalition will support the further development of the European Union’s defence capabilities, particularly as part of EU civil crisis management capacity. In addition to building defence capacity, the Ministry of Defence will place a stress on the completion and optimization of the Czech Republic’s Integrated Rescue System, with maximum emphasis on protecting the lives and health of the population and property in case of natural disaster or technological accident. In the context of the above objectives, and following approval of the new NATO Strategic Concept by heads of state and government at the Lisbon Summit in autumn this year, the Coalition will amend the system of national strategic documents – the Security Strategy of the Czech Republic – and will subsequently develop a new Defence Strategy of the Czech Republic. The Ministry of Defence will accelerate work on the adoption of a new service law (the Act on the Service of Professional Soldiers), which will create conditions for the stabilization of personnel in the armed forces, codify the conditions for their career prospects and create conditions for adequate social security. The Ministry of Defence, in accordance with the current construction requirements of the armed forces and with regard to source opportunities, will optimize the organizational structure of the Ministry of Defence and the system for the command and control of the armed forces at all levels. The resulting structures and systems, in terms of their essential scope and functionality, will be consistent with the requirements arising from our NATO membership and generally binding legislation of the Czech Republic, and must be proportionate to the current size of the Czech Army. Structural changes in the Czech Army must be geared towards national military policy ambitions, particularly with regard to their actually envisaged scope and method predicted for the deployment of forces. The Ministry of Defence will ensure a gradual increase in deployable forces in line with obligations stemming from NATO membership. The Coalition respects the fact that, as a member of NATO and the EU, the Czech Republic must bear an appropriate share of responsibility for the fulfilment of decisions taken collectively. In this regard, the Ministry of Defence will develop, and the Czech Government will subsequently propose to the Czech Parliament for approval, plans for the deployment of the Czech Army’s forces and resources in foreign operations and missions to a scope and extent corresponding to the Czech Republic’s due share in those common activities. These proposals will be submitted for a period of two to three years. The Coalition, with the knowledge that the Czech Republic has only one set of military forces and resources, will seek the closest possible cooperation between NATO and the EU in the management of military operations and civilian missions and in the building of the necessary military capabilities. The Coalition will promote a complementary approach to the building of the military capabilities of both organizations, while ensuring maximum effectiveness in the spending of national and collective resources, the harmonization of their efforts and, in particular, the elimination of duplication. The Ministry of Defence will complete the restructuring and supplementation of the Czech Army with personnel and a comprehensive system for their preparation, training and education in order to increase the quality of human resources in general and to deploy well equipped and trained compact, mostly organic units to foreign operations and missions, complemented, depending on the nature of the tasks to be performed, by with the deployment of specialized teams. The Coalition will not allow the slightest flagging of our intention to honour our allied commitments, particularly with regard to the Czech Republic’s participation in NATO operations. The Ministry of Defence will make the medium-term plan of necessary acquisitions of armaments and rearmaments in particular more precise and more viable so that all expenditure in this regard is effective, predictable and controllable. The Coalition is committed to enabling the Ministry of Defence to make direct purchases without intermediaries. The Ministry of Defence will periodically submit to the competent committee of the Chamber of Deputies of the Czech Parliament summary information on public procurement on the same expanded scale as this requirement has currently been set for the Czech Government (Government Resolution No 158/2010). The Coalition will responsibly and seriously approach the safeguarding of the defence and security interests of the Czech Republic as a Member State of NATO with continuous pressure to eliminate any inefficient spending, and will seek to reconcile expenditure and actual needs in this area. For the 2011 financial year, the Coalition has agreed to reduce the budget heading of the Ministry of Defence by CZK 2.1 billion; by 31 December 2010, a detailed analysis of the Ministry’s spending patterns will be conducted in order to identify further savings for the 2012–2014 period. The Coalition, recognizing the increasing interpenetration of internal and external security risks, will implement the defence policy in close interdepartmental cooperation between the competent Ministries and other central administrative authorities. Law, justice, public administration, bureaucracy and corruption CORRUPTION We will submit a law on lobbying aimed at enhancing the transparency of the relationship between politicians and officials on the one hand and bodies specializing in lobbying on the other. This law will include definitions of lobbying, lobbying contact and lobbyists and the mandatory registration of lobbyists. The register of lobbyists will be accessible on the Internet, and penalties will be set for failure to comply with the conditions laid down by the law. We will submit an amendment to the Constitution and an amendment to the Supreme Audit Office Act permitting checks on the handling of the assets of local governments and other public bodies. We will propose a method for monitoring the handling of the assets of legal entities controlled by the state or local authorities. The Government will carry out periodic checks, once a year, on the implementation of corrective measures resulting from SAO audit findings. We will propose the establishment of a central register of notifications under the Conflict of Interest Act in order to facilitate public access to this information through the Data Box Information System on a form to be published by the Ministry of the Interior on the Internet. We propose establishing the obligation for public authorities to draw up and publish their own code of ethics. We will push for state officials appointed to the boards of companies in which the state has a shareholding to be selected according to their expertise, and for their remuneration for work in such bodies to be published. We will prepare an amendment to legislation so that local government officials appointed to the boards of companies in which the local government has a shareholding to be selected according to their expertise, and for their remuneration for work in such bodies to be published. We will refine the concept of cooperating defendant (crown witness) under Section 178a of the Rules of Criminal Procedure and related provisions so that, particularly in serious cases of organized crime, complete impunity can be arranged in exceptional circumstances. We will use the concept of reliability tests under Section 107 of the Police Act to set similar tests for other persons working for public authorities. We will arrange for the publication of a guide for those who encounter a corrupt offer and are interested in cooperating in the detection of such crime with law enforcement agencies, including the protection of the notifier. We will submit an amendment to the Criminal Code tightening the penalties for corruption among officials (disqualification, forfeiture of property). We will introduce mandatory corruption impact assessments (CIA) as part of bills or amendments placed in the legislative process. We will conduct this assessment retroactively for selected laws. Each year, we will review legislation with a regulatory or bureaucratic burden or with a corruption risk with a view to repealing or modifying such legislation in order to reduce that risk or burden. We will submit, for public comment, a proposal to incorporate the right of citizens and companies to protection against bureaucracy and corruption. We will arrange, by way of a Government resolution, for the publication of Government voting, by name, on matters where the Government takes decisions on the management of state property or on public procurement, subsidies, grants or other aid from the national budget, with the exception of matters to be discussed within the scope of the Act on the Protection of Classified Information. After adopting this resolution, the Government will immediately call on regional and municipal councils to accept a similar procedure. After discussion with the Association of Regions of the Czech Republic, the Union of Towns and Municipalities of the Czech Republic, and the Association of Local Governments, we will present amendments to the relevant laws so that voting by regional and municipal councils is published, by name, in matters concerning the management of local government property or public procurement, subsidies, grants or other aid from the local government budget, with the exception of matters to be discussed within the scope of the Act on the Protection of Classified Information.
Appears in 1 contract
Sources: Coalition Agreement