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Recent polls have suggested a new political grouping may make the five-percent threshold to reach the Chamber of Deputies in elections this autumn. The Oath (Přísaha in Czech) have been using similar anti-corruption rhetoric to previous new parties and are led by Robert Šlachta, a former top police officer. So what explains the rise of the Oath? That’s a question that I put to political scientist Petr Just.

The annual Baroque Festival gets underway on Friday in the Moravian city of Olomouc. Over the course of the next two months, visitors will have a chance to see a wide range of performances from symphonic to chamber and sacred music. One of the highlights will be the premiere of an opera by the 18th century Czech-born composer Antonín Rejcha.

Františkovy Lázně is the smallest and westernmost town of the Bohemian Spa Triangle, which it forms along with Karlovy Vary and Marianské Lázně. But although its population numbers only a little over five thousand residents, the town can certainly hold its own against its two larger rivals. Local spas have a tradition of being on the cutting-edge of balneology, and Františkovy Lázně itself is the greenest and most tranquil of the historical Czech spa towns.

The Czech Republic should enable the handing out of EU COVID certificates to Czechs, EU citizens – and foreigners with permanent residency in Czechia who have been vaccinated in selected foreign countries – from July 12, the health minister has announced. The date has already been delayed in the past, due to issues with the ministry’s IT system.

While most of the coal mines in the Karviná region are closing down, miners on the other side of the Moravian-Silesian region may be soon returning underground. There are many abandoned slate mines around Opava and with growing demand for the precious raw material, investors would like to resume its mining.

With the easing of travel restrictions, the demand for short-term accommodation through house-renting applications, such as Airbnb or Booking.com is slowly increasing. However, the number of Airbnb apartments offered for short-term rentals currently stands at 10 percent of the pre-Covid level.

Czech tennis star Karolína Plíšková has been world number one and is a constant presence in the top 10. However, she has only been to one Grand Slam final in her career – and she is now hoping to at least equal that achievement after reaching the last four at Wimbledon.

The Czech Ministry of Health has announced a tightening of restrictions amidst an upsurge of new Covid-19 cases. Starting next Friday, Czechs who are not fully vaccinated will have to undergo a test for the coronavirus when returning from abroad, since a single Covid vaccine will no longer be considered sufficient protection.

Most Czechs eligible to vote in the October parliamentary elections say that a party’s program will be the deciding factor in how they will cast their ballots, according to a Median survey for Czech Radio. The party leader’s personalities are also important, the survey finds – but none of the current contenders enjoy overwhelming popularity.

With one of the largest concentrations of hot springs in Europe, Karlovy Vary is the largest Czech spa town. For hundreds of years, it has attracted visitors from all over the world, including some very famous figures such as Johan Wolfgang Goethe or the Russian Czar Peter the Great. But Karlovy Vary, which may soon become a UNESCO World Heritage Site, has more to offer than just mineral water and spas. One of the most famous Czech liquors was invented here, and the town’s historical centre is filled with prized architectural landmarks.