<div>Chamber: The issuance of building permits in the Czech Republic should be faster</div>

Prague - The process of granting building permits in the Czech Republic is too lengthy and needs to be shortened. This was stated today at a press conference by the Vice President of the Czech Chamber of Commerce (HK ČR), Zdeněk Zajíček. According to him, the amendment to the building law brings only partial acceleration. The construction industry is also struggling with a shortage of labor and materials, he stated.

According to Zajíček, faster issuance of building permits is important, among other things, for the state's strategic constructions, such as energy and transport infrastructure. He believes that the entire process could be streamlined through digitalization. "The amendment provides hope for real digital management; however, it must be emphasized that this is merely about creating an opportunity or potential. We now need to focus on the actual implementation. It is precisely the digitalization of the entire permitting process that will have a fundamental impact on the efficiency of the whole complex system," Zajíček stated.

According to the President of the Association of Entrepreneurs in Construction, Jiří Nouza, it is necessary to link the amendment with an adequate regulation on general technical requirements for constructions. "This could be just as significant as the adopted construction legislation," he mentioned, adding that the state should consult standards with the professional public from the outset.

One of the challenges in construction now is also meeting climate goals mandated by legislation, Nouza stated. According to him, buildings will have to comply with stricter emission standards or use renewable sources of energy. "In addition, the construction sector is burdened by a long-term shortage of both skilled and unskilled labor, similar to other sectors of the economy. I am convinced that the education system is not responding to market needs. On the other hand, the Czech state does not allow this gap to be sufficiently filled by foreign workers," he stated.

In the case of transport construction, the state should use new financing models more, according to HK ČR, which could speed up the construction of highways, for example. "Here we see a considerable opportunity thanks to the amendment to the law on the State Fund for Transport Infrastructure, which will allow this institution to issue bonds, thereby obtaining additional funds for building important transport projects," said HK ČR Vice President Michal Štefl.

According to Štefl, a problem is also the shortage of construction materials, especially gravel and building stone. "According to the Czech Geological Survey, 60 percent of quarries and sand pits will be closed in ten years, and the expected replacement from newly opened deposits is almost zero. The permitting processes for merely expanding mining usually take up to ten years," he said. He added that if the state does not open new mining locations, materials will have to be imported from abroad.

The amendment to the building law, which was approved by MPs on Friday, cancels, among other things, the planned establishment of the Supreme Building Authority and maintains the current 694 building authorities in municipalities, with the possibility of reducing this number according to construction activity.