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The outcome of Slovakia’s general elections over the weekend, which left the established parties badly weakened and opened the door to several newcomers including a far-right party, has evoked concern in the Czech Republic. Politicians in Prague point out that the fragmented post-election scene will make it hard, if not impossible, to form a stable government.

In a resolution passed on Thursday the Czech Senate called on President Miloš Zeman to show greater restraint in his statements and actions so as not to divide society and harm the country’s image abroad. The president, whose outspoken views often clash with the government’s policy line, reminded the upper chamber that he had been elected by the people and would do as he sees fit.

Twenty lawmakers from across the political spectrum are backing a proposal to ban fur farms in the Czech Republic. The draft bill envisages a ban on the setting up of new fur farms as of 2017 and would force existing ones to close a year after that. But the ban would not affect rabbit farms where the fur is a by-product.

The sometimes incendiary nature of recent Czech history has once again been demonstrated. Lower house of parliament lawmakers have backed a proposal to rename the November 17 holiday which marks the start of the Velvet Revolution in a move which has been interpreted as a victory of sorts for the Communist Party of Bohemia and Moravia (KSČM).

Prague’s district of Jižní Město is mostly known for its endless blocks of prefabricated flats. Recently, however, the district, nicknamed Jižák, has made national headlines after the local mayor suggested separating it from the rest of the capital – arguing that the move would give it greater control and allow improvements to take place.

The internationally renowned Czech opera singer Magdalena Kožená has established an endowment fund to support the Czech Republic’s unique system of art schools, focused on music, ballet, drama and visual arts. The fund was officially presented at a donor evening at Prague’s Rudolfinum on Friday. I asked David Mareček, the Managing Director of the Czech Philharmonic, which is a co-patron of the fund, to explain what makes these schools so special:

The Christian Democrats are planning to vote for a conflict of interest bill later this week and the Social Democrats are considering doing likewise. But ANO chief Andrej Babiš warns that if they do back the amendment – which could hit his business interests hard – it may put the future of the three-party alliance in doubt.

Newly-released health ministry data shows a marked increase in mandated closures of Czech food establishments by health and safety inspectors. During 2015, 259 restaurants and other food establishments were ordered closed across the county for various hygiene-related violations.

March 1 marks the beginning of the end for Prague’s Opencard, a multipurpose transit pass dogged by controversy, not least for its more than billion crown price tag. On Tuesday, Prague authorities began issuing its replacement, the Lítačka; all the same, it will be some time before the Opencard is fully phased out.

An armchair designed by Slovenian architect Josip Plecnik for Czechoslovak President Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk was sold for a record sum at Prague’s Sýpka auction house on Sunday. The auction house says it is not at liberty to reveal whether the precious artefact was acquired by Prague Castle which has two other pieces from the collection.