PRAGUE - The Czech Finance Ministry has submitted a 2025 budget draft with a 9% lower deficit to the government, saying it will bring record investments while narrowing the fiscal gap to around 2% of gross domestic product.
"We have prepared a budget draft for next year in which there is the most money historically for investment and at the same time we are cutting the deficit to GDP to a level around 2%," Prime Minister Petr Fiala said on the X platform on Sunday. Finance Minister Zbynek Stanjura said last month he would not propose an early end to a windfall tax on energy companies and banks next year, which has mainly fallen on electricity producer CEZ and is due to expire at the end of 2025.The ministry has forecast economic growth to pick up next year to 2.7% after cutting its outlook for this year to 1.1%, amid a slow recovery from an inflation surge that hit households.
The Pirates party, a junior member of the ruling five-party centre-right coalition, told CTK news agency on Sunday it would seek more money for housing, calling the current draft unacceptable.