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Czechs’ trust in EU institutions hit a new low in February, according to a poll by the STEM agency released on Wednesday. Some 46 percent of those polled said they trusted the EU, 7 percent less than a year ago. Around 39 percent of Czechs said they trusted the European Parliament. The agency said that the waning trust in the EU might be related to the fact that few Czechs agree with the adoption of the euro.

President Václav Klaus will head the Czech delegation at an EU summit in Brussels next week that will discuss the bloc’s stance on the situation in Libya and other North African countries, Prime Minister Petr Nečas said on Wednesday. The European Union imposed on Monday sanctions against Muammar Gaddafi’s regime in Libya that include an arms embargo, a travel ban to EU member states, and the freezing of assets of Libyan officials. Last month, Czech Foreign Minister Karel Schwarzenberg called for a tough stance on the Libyan leader after he came into the spotlight for saying the EU should not interfere in Libya.

The Ministry of Agriculture is seeking to double the EU funds that can be channelled into commercial fish farming between 2014 and 2020 according to the business paper E15. The current six year support programme until 2013 offers around 900 million crowns, of which EU funding accounts for around three-quarters of the total. A spokeswoman for the ministry said the extra funds could be used to put disused ponds back into production and also limit the population of cormorants which eat the fish. Joint lobbying for extra funds is planned together with other landlocked countries such as Hungary, Slovakia, Austria, and Luxembourg.

Nineteen towns and local councils have tabled proposals for funding aimed at tackling the creation of ghettos of Roma citizens. The proposals have been submitted to the government agency for integration of the Roma. At least seven proposals should win financing with the winners chosen in April. Last year the Czech government earmarked 11.4 million crowns to such projects with a further 16 million crowns coming from European funds. Projects covered 23 localities. Funding allows integration specialists to have input into local policies that could help encourage Roma to integrate in local communities and local communities to accept them.

President Václav Klaus has intervened in a row over the possible appointment of a new deputy minister at the ministry of education. Ladislav Bátora had been tipped to fill a vacant post in the ministry but the appointment ran into problems when it was revealed that he had been a candidate for the extremist National Party. President Klaus described the reaction as a “dictatorship of political correctness.” Mr. Bátora, a critic of the European Union and multiculturism, is reported to be close to some of the president’s aides. Prime Minister Petr Nečas said the president was offering his personal opinion and that was all it was.

Czechs have the lowest trust in their government's ability to cope with the world economic crisis, according to a poll conducted for the European Union. The poll by the Eurobarometer agency showed up to 80 percent of Czechs are convinced that reforms are needed. But in spite of measures already taken and promised, only 17 percent of Czech respondents consider the economic situation to be good. Most are also critical of the performance of the centre-right coalition made up of the Civic Democrats (ODS), TOP 09 and Public Affairs (VV). Only 6.0 percent of people believe the government can deal with the crisis in the best way, three times less than the EU average.

Former Czech MEP and diplomat Jana Hybaskova has been charged with leading the European Union diplomatic delegation to Iraq. Ms. Hybaskova, who is 45, is the first representative of the Czech Republic to be appointed to such a high post in the EU´s fledgling diplomatic service. She was appointed by EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton on Friday. A member of the Czech diplomatic corps since 1990, Jana Hybaskova headed the ministry´s section for the Middle East for seven years and later was the Czech ambassador to Slovenia, Kuwait and Qatar, where she was also responsible for Iraq.

Prague is the sixth richest region in the whole of the European Union and clearly the wealthiest locality in Central and Eastern Europe according to figures released by the EU’s statistics. It said the region’s Gross Domestic Product reached 172 percent of the EU average. The Czech capital is only exceeded in terms of wealth by Hamburg, the Dutch city of Groeningen, Brussels, central London and Luxembourg. The poorest region in the Czech Republic straddles the Karlovy Vary and Ústi regions with an average 62 percent of EU average wealth.

The EU president visited the Czech Republic for talks aimed at paving the wave for a March EU summit on tighter budget discipline. He met with Prime Minister Petr Nečas and later with President Václav Klaus, a strong opponent of the Lisbon reform treaty. Neither side commented on the latter meeting.

Four Czech and Slovak foodstuffs have been granted EU protection as regional specialties, the European Commission announced on Monday. These include two local brands of salami known as Lovecký salám and Liptovský salám, as well as two kinds of sausages. These products were added to the EU list of traditional specialities guaranteed trade mark protection. The European Commission said the protection would not prevent other producers from using the name of the meat products, even if they do not follow the specifications approved. However, producers using a different recipe would not be allowed to use the label.