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The Czech government on Thursday unveiled moves to spark the rapid take-off of e-government in the country. From a promising start a decade or so ago, the Czech efforts have stumbled with the country slipping badly down the European and world performance rankings.

Breathless is the title of a presentation of Czech glass that runs from this Saturday as part of the prestigious London Design Festival. Located in a former garage in the Brompton Design District near the Victoria and Albert Museum, the exhibition is a joint project of the award-winning Dechem studio, the OKOLO design collective and London’s Czech Centre. As last minute preparations were made, OKOLO’s Adam Štěch filled me in on what the show has to offer.

The renowned Czech writer Ivan Klíma, author of novels such as Love and Garbage and the autobiography My Crazy Century, turned 85 on Wednesday. Klíma became a dissident in communist Czechoslovakia after the Soviet invasion and was one of a number of Czech writers who were forced to publish in samizdat at home while simultaneously enjoying international success. I discussed aspects of Ivan Klíma’s work and life with Gerald Turner, who has translated a number of the author’s works, including Judge on Trial.

In a move clearly targeted at billionaire businessman and ANO finance minister Andrej Babiš, MPs in the Czech lower house voted on Wednesday to bar media ownership on the part of members of the government. Another proposal to prevent ministers from running companies was rejected. But how will the vote actually affect Mr. Babiš’s media empire?

The informal European Union summit of government leaders in Bratislava on Friday is meant to send a signal that the political elite can get the European project back on track after the shock of the Brexit vote and apparent inability of Brussels to get to grips with the many problems facing the continent. The looming summit meeting appears to have sparked a discussion in the Czech Republic as well.

The first ever Caesarean section in Europe, in which both mother and child survived, might have taken place in Prague at the court of Jan of Luxembourg already in the 14th century. Czech historians and doctors have come to the conclusion after examining various written accounts from the era. The results of their research have been published in the magazine Czech gynaecology.

Final farewells were paid to the great gymnast Věra Čáslavská at Prague’s National Theatre on Monday. Athletes from across the generations, ministers and other notable figures from Czech public life expressed their respect for the nation’s most successful Olympian, who passed away two weeks ago at the age of 74.

Two former mayors of Prague were handed suspended prison sentences and fines by the Prague Municipal Court on Thursday for their part in managing the city’s controversial multipurpose transport pass Opencard. The ruling, which will now be subject to appeals, is the latest chapter in a highly-publicized case going back a decade.

The lower house of Parliament has approved a controversial air pollution bill which would allow local authorities to check what households are burning in their stoves. The bill is to put off people burning waste, such as pet bottles, which significantly contributes to air pollution in many Czech towns and villages. While environment activists are cheering, the centre-right opposition parties have denounced the move as an abuse of individual freedom.

Czech tennis player Karolína Plíšková is now on the verge of her first ever Grand Slam singles final after sweeping easily into the last four of the US Open. There is one obstacle though in her way, the intimidating figure of world number one and tournament top seed Serena Williams.