Czech centre-right government majority shrinks after party leaves

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PRAGUE (Reuters) – The Czech centre-right government’s parliamentary majority was set to shrink after a junior party said it will leave the ruling coalition following the dismissal of its leader as development minister.

The liberal Pirate party said late on Monday that nearly four fifths of its members who voted in an internal poll supported leaving Prime Minister Petr Fiala’s government. Its parliamentary club agreed with the decision on Tuesday.

Two other Pirate party ministers were to submit their resignations on Tuesday.

But one of the two, Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky, who has been the main voice of the government’s strong support for Ukraine in its war with Russia, quit the party and agreed on Tuesday to a proposal by Fiala to stay on, both told a briefing.

The shuffle will cost the government four seats in parliament, although it will retain a majority with 104 members in the 200-seat lower house.

In a surprise move last week, Fiala sought to dismiss outgoing Pirate leader Ivan Bartos, citing mismanagement of the introduction of a digital system for issuing building permits.

President Petr Pavel granted Bartos’s dismissal on Monday evening.

The shake-up followed a poor showing for government parties in regional and senate elections this month, raising nerves in the coalition a year before national elections in which the populist opposition party has a comfortable poll lead.

Fiala says he wants to complete the cabinet reshuffle by the end of next week.

He said on Tuesday he would replace Bartos, but leave the Pirates’ seat of minister for legislation unfilled.

Separately, Fiala said he would replace Industry and Trade Minister Jozef Sikela from the centrist STAN party. He has been nominated as the country’s commissioner at the European Commission.

(Reporting by Jason Hovet, editing by Ed Osmond)