Final Word from Monday, December 18, 2023

One of the most revealing parts of TV Nova's debate yesterday between PM Petr Fiala and ex-PM Andrej Babiš came when Fiala tested Babiš (at 19m) to see if he knows how much butter costs. As the second-largest dairy owner in the country, Babiš has a pretty good idea (as little as Kč 30 on sale, he said). Fiala had spoken repeatedly about Agrofert but apparently failed to connect the dots. Another similar moment came (at 56m) when Fiala said that companies are failing but that this is the way the market works. What is important, he said, is that his government hasn't allowed any entire segments to fail. This was his argument until recently for promising targeted energy subsidies only to companies that get into trouble. He explained on CNN Prima News on Dec. 6 that his government can't pay across-the-board energy subsidies. Then last week his government agreed to do just that. It's fairer this way, to be sure, but it shows that Fiala should leave discussions of business issues to those making the decisions. [ Czech Republic Television Za pět minut dvanáct ANO ODS milk Olma ]