The Chamber has resumed the approval of the contentious construction amendment, it should vote

Prague – The House has resumed the final approval of the controversial coalition construction amendment for the third time. Michal Kučera from the opposition TOP 09 was the first to speak today, stating that the lower house will not be voting on a modern construction law, but rather on a cluster of dozens of parliamentary amendments. Civic Democrat Karel Haas mentioned that he understands the goals of the proposal but criticized the manner of its preparation. It is expected that the MPs will vote on the form of the construction amendment today.

The smallest opposition party, TOP 09, according to Kučera, seeks to expedite the permitting processes and reduce bureaucracy. "But not at the expense of violating the rights of citizens and self-governments,” he said. Like some other opposition MPs, Kučera advocates returning the construction amendment for reconsideration in the second reading. "I fear that this law will not bring rapid construction without unnecessary paperwork, but rather chaos, confusion, and delays," he stated.

Coalition proponents expect the changes to the construction law to accelerate and simplify the approval of constructions. "I understand and consider the goals, intentions, and purpose of the large amendment to construction law to be correct,” Haas said in response. In his speech, he supported the introduction of the principle of a single procedure at one office culminating in one stamp, the reduction of mandatory opinions, or the abandonment of the model of 626 first-instance building authorities.

However, Haas also stated that he cannot support the amendment. He fears, among other things, that the newly established state construction administration will not be staffed. According to Haas, the coalition has also not communicated with critics of the proposed changes and has rejected ODS's parliamentary amendments that he believes would support development, business, and self-governments.

In addition to establishing a state construction administration, the amendment presupposes that planning, preparation, construction, and operation of public infrastructure and reserved constructions will be in the public interest. This could play a role in potential considerations about expropriation. Reserved constructions will also include buildings for mass housing, that is, structures with a floor area over 10,000 square meters and a predominant residential function. Critics argue that the proposal is written for large developers and endangers the protection of public interests and the environment.

The MPs began the approval of the construction amendment a week ago and continued it on Wednesday. The final round has so far filled about six hours in total.