Speech of the Prime Minister Mirek Topolánek on the Occasion of the Vote of Confidence Given in the Chamber of Deputies of the Parliament of the Czech

Dear Chairman, dear colleagues,
all of us know that it is a kind of a theatre performance. Nevertheless, I regard as important to say three things at a minimum. I thing I will leave to my ministers to respond to certain arguments of previous speakers.
First, it is a legitimate right of the opposition to initiate the vote of confidence. Second – I want to mention some alleged reasons for today's voting. And third – I want to state real reasons of the ČSSD for this voting.
First, the opposition has full right to try to unseat the government. If somebody has a right to do something, he has also responsibility. The ČSSD will bear full responsibility for reasons of today's voting, for its rightness or for the fact that it may be just useless exhibition. I believe that journalist present will report true information on today's event, so that people could make their own conclusion.
I have no feeling that it is necessary to add more to this point.
Second, the social democrats state certain reasons for the vote of confidence. I dare to state that these reasons are false. Let us check them and let us ask Jiří Paroubek and the others what is the real weight of their reasons for the vote of confidence. They say that it is necessary to unseat the government owing to the investigation of the former Deputy Prime Minister Jiří Čunek. It is a strange matter that this proposal was presented soon after Jiří Čunek had left the government and the vote is being held the moment Jiří Čunek is acquitted of suspicion. Was it really necessary to initiate the vote of confidence because of Jiří Čunek? It occurs to me a comparison in this connection. Former social democratic Minister of Finance Svoboda left his ministerial post and was directly arrested and then he was imprisoned. In spite of this fact there was no vote of confidence held then. Is it really necessary to vote of confidence at the moment when Jiří Čunek is not arrested and moreover he is acquitted of the offence? Do not you really want to change your minds and to avoid useless disgrace?
It is allegedly necessary to unseat the government because of resignation of the Minister of Education and the Minister for Regional Development. Let alone the fact that the Minister of Education Youths and Physical Training has already been appointed; how many times the previous government changed its ministers, ladies and gentlemen? How many times the debate on their successors was dragged out? How many times had the Prime Minister to be temporarily in charge of ministries? And I disregard the fact that we had three Prime Ministers during a single election period. I will answer these questions. During the first nine months of the Špidla´s cabinet, four ministers resigned from their posts. Moreover, the Prime Minister had to be in charge of the Ministry of Justice for more than one month, from 6th August to 16th September as the proper candidate was sought. This is a common part of democracy.
In absolutism regimes it is easy to make changes in an hour, but democracy means a discussion, as Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk said. Let us discuss then, let us have time to do it.
Or, do you really mean, ladies and gentlemen on my left-hand side that the quality of democracy is assessed according to speed of personnel changes? It is allegedly necessary to unseat the government, as it governs by means of two former deputies of the ČSSD. This is the most hypocritical argument. Or did not you govern by means of the former deputy of the ODS in the last election period, ladies and gentlemen of my left-hand side?
Third, I have heard other arguments, which could be included under the slogan – the performance of the government is not good. This argument is not quite untrue; it is just half-true. The real reason for the vote of confidence is really the performance of the government; but not wrong performance; it is because of its good performance. (Laugher from the left-hand side of the audience.) The real reason for the vote of confidence is the fact that the government has pushed through the Chamber of Deputies nearly all laws, with the exception of the Act on Budgetary Allocation of Taxes for Regions. On the contrary, 28 legal norms were pushed through including a complicated norm and amendments connected with stabilization of public finances. I believe that the Act on the State Budget will be passed tomorrow, as well.
There are 42 laws which are in the second reading in the Chamber of Deputies. Ladies and gentlemen, which government of yours can boast of such diligence and successfulness?
The real reason for the vote of confidence is the fact that the government fulfils its Programme Declaration. 57 projects out of 188 governmental projects, and I do not want to mention all of them, are fulfilled, 117 projects are in the progress and the other will be started in compliance with the time schedule approved.
The real reason for the vote of confidence is that the government has overcome its most critical point; it was formed in January after seven-month ordeal, when it was not possible to form a new government and then it pushed through the stabilization of public budgets. In three quarters of the year it pushed through laws that had not been pushed through by the previous government in eight years. Or, is not it true that the reform of yours completely failed four years ago? I admit that the result is a compromise, which was in December acceptable for you either. The stabilization means cease of debts, economic growth and it will become a resource of the future prosperity.
As Jiří Paroubek admitted, the reform will not do any harm to people; those catastrophic scenarios of the ČSSD will not come true. Ladies and gentlemen on my left-hand side, is not it the real reason why you initiate the vote of confidence? The real reason is that hopes concerning weakness and cohesion of the opposition have not been fulfilled. The coalition sticks together and problems are solved in a discussion. Let us compare present performance of coalition chairmen with fermentations in the previous government. We are discussing things. Is not a certain disappointment the real reason for the vote of confidence, ladies and gentlemen on my left-hand side? Perhaps the real reason is that despite unpopular measures and discreditable campaign popularity of my party is still high. According to the November opinion poll of the STEM (and you like opinion polls) has the ODS 27,5% and the ČSSD 27% of preferences. Let us compare it with the same period after elections during the Špidla´s cabinet. The opposition ODS had 32% and the ČSSD 20% of preferences. Does not distress you such surprising development of preferences, ladies and gentlemen on my left-hand side? And I could mention further reasons for the vote of confidence; various scandals which accompany the opposition party. In short, it was necessary to create a mist and thus hide your own dirty linen.
I do not want to speak longer; I will leave it to another time. It is possible that I am mistaken regarding true reasons for the vote of confidence; it is possible that true reasons are different. The votes of confidence always repeat after half-a-year period. The first one was held in June, now it is being held for the second time. There is perhaps a permanent dependence here. Let us call it for example a half-a-year opposition period of the Social Democratic Party.
Thank you for your attention.