Czechs in chaos as parliament ends state of emergency

THE Czech Republic has been plunged into chaos after parliament deprived the government of a powerful tool to tackle coronavirus, with a new and highly contagious variant gaining force.

The lower house of parliament refused the minority government’s request to extend a state of emergency which gave the cabinet powers to impose and keep in place strict nationwide restrictions and limit people’s rights.

Ministers warned the move will worsen the situation and might cause the struggling health system to collapse. Opposition parties said the current lockdown does not work and accused the government of prime minister Andrej Babis of not doing enough for businesses and others affected by restrictions.

The state of emergency will expire tomorrow after 132 days.

The government can use other legal options to reimpose some measures but not all of them.

Bars, restaurants and cafes could reopen on Monday while a night-time curfew and a ban on gatherings of more than two people will be cancelled.

A GROUP of friends were left shaken after three masked men entered their home and stole their phones.

Nottinghamshire Police were called to a house in St Ann’s following a report of an aggravated burglary.

Three phones were stolen after the men entered through a window, searched the house and threatened the friends.

Police Constable Thomas Rawlings, who is leading the investigation, said: “This must have been a terrifying experience for the residents inside. It was reported the group entered the house in Sherwin Walk at around 6pm on February 2.

“Officers will be providing ongoing support for the victims as a team of officers work tirelessly to trace those responsible.

“Burglary is an extremely invasive crime and has huge impacts for those involved, both homeowners and retailers.

“We would reassure people that reports such as this are taken very seriously and we will thoroughly investigate where this has happened.

“We are following up a number of lines of enquiry to get these men in custody but I would appeal for anyone who has information, CCTV or dash-cam footage of anything suspicious in the area to come forward as soon as possible.

“If you can help please call 101, quoting incident 540 of February 2.”