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The opposition Social Democrats have tried four times before to topple the country’s fragile centre-right government and failed. But this Tuesday’s vote sees them closer than ever to success. On Sunday, they received a potential boost when rebel Civic Democrat MP Vlastimil Tlustý – a long-time rival of the prime minister’s - said the cup had “overflowed”, indicating that he might vote against, coordinating his decision with others. Together, the votes of several rebel as well as independent MPs could then be enough to tip the scales.

More than 700 different cultural events have been planned to coincide with the Czech Republic’s EU presidency. While a lot of these concerts and exhibitions are taking place in the Czech Republic itself, another major centre of activity is, it goes without saying, Brussels. In his role as the head of the Czech Center in the Belgian capital, Petr Polívka has his work cut out. I spoke to him at the opening of a new exhibition at the center last week:

Marks of the Czech Republic’s EU presidency can be found all over Brussels, from David Černý’s controversial sculpture ‘Entropa’ hanging in the council’s Justus Lipsius building, right down to the food on offer in the European Parliament’s canteen. On Thursday, parliament employees were treated to the first in a series of special Czech dishes – I went along to wish them a bon apetit, or should that be dobrou chut’?

An 87-year-old former “people’s prosecutor” has entered prison to begin a six-year sentence for her role in one of the most notorious Communist show-trials of the 1950s, in which democratic politician Milada Horáková was sent to the gallows on trumped up charges. Ludmila Brožová-Polednová voluntarily entered prison on Thursday evening, and will now undergo medical tests to ascertain whether she is fit to serve her sentence.

On Friday leaders from around the continent met for the second day of the European Union’s Spring Summit, chaired by Czech Prime Minister Mirek Topolánek. The Czech EU presidency went into the summit with an ambitious agenda, including the financial crisis, energy security and an Eastern Partnership project that aims to forge closer ties with a number of former Soviet republics.

One of the biggest hits with audiences at the One World film festival, which came to a close in Prague on Thursday night, was Japan: A Story of Love and Hate. It is a portrait of a non-conformist, fifty-something ‘kept man’ whose much younger girlfriend holds down three jobs, including being paid to talk to men in bars. While very funny, the documentary also offers a fascinating insight into Japan’s rigid culture, including scenes of workers whose day begins with obligatory exercises and chants about achieving targets. I asked its English director

Leaders of the European Union are set to begin a two-day meeting in Brussels aimed at agreeing a strategy for tackling the global economic crisis. The meeting’s being chaired by Czech prime minister Mirek Topolánek in his capacity as president of the European Council, and the Czech Republic is under a lot of pressure to provide leadership at a time when the EU is suffering from falling production and rising unemployment.

The Democratic Republic of the Congo is the scene of the most deadly conflict since WWII, and it has become the subject of several exhibitions around Prague in the last month. The exhibitions focus particularly on women and children, and on the work of Czech charities in a country that Joseph Conrad famously called “The Heart of Darkness”.

Wednesday sees the release of Michelin’s Main Cities in Europe, a guidebook which rates Europe’s best restaurants. Last year Prague’s Allegro, located in the Four Seasons Hotel, became the first in a post communist country to clinch a coveted star. This year it retained its position, while numerous other restaurants were in the running. Another that clinched the prestigious star was Maze, in the Hotel Hilton, until recently run by celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay.

A welcome feature of the Prague metro system – its freedom from passenger turnstiles – is coming to the end of the line. The capital city’s transport authority says non-paying passengers are simply costing it too much and now wants to bring back the barriers - a former feature of the metro in the 1970s and early 1980s.