Ministry replies to EC in Babis' conflict of interest case

The Regional Development Ministry has replied to the European Commission’s preliminary audit on Prime Minister Andrej Babiš’ suspected conflict of interest.

According to the ministry the reply was handed over in person to officials at the Czech Republic’s Permanent Representation at the EU in Brussels.

In an interview for the Czech newspaper Deník N, Regional Development Minister Dostálová said the detailed reply contained contradictions to every sentence on every page of the audit.

According to the audit’s conclusion, Mr. Babiš has retained some influence on his company Agrofert,despite having placed it in trust funds, and therefore has a conflict of interest.

As a result, the Czech Republic may be forced to return about CZK 450 million in EU funding drawn by Agrofert.

The head of the Pirate Party, Ivan Bartoš, has called for the reply to be made public.