In the first half of October, the 65th edition of the International Engineering Fair took place in Brno. Among the attendees at the opening were Prime Minister Petr Fiala (ODS), Minister of Industry and Trade Lukáš Vlček, Minister of Labor and Social Affairs Marian Jurečka (KDU-ČSL), President of the Chamber of Commerce Zdeněk Zajíček (ODS), President of the Confederation of Industry and Transport Jan Rafaj, and Deputy Speaker of the Parliament and former Minister of Industry and Trade Karel Havlíček (ANO 2011).
The latter gave a rather critical speech on the opening day. “Unfortunately, the current economic situation is not good at all, and there’s no point in pretending otherwise. Within the European Union, we are heading in the wrong direction, and soon we’ll hit a wall. And I'm saying this as someone who supports the EU, as someone who has always backed this project and always will,” he stated. “As for the Czech Republic, the situation is far from rosy. We have an unpredictable tax, energy, and investment environment. That's simply a fact,” he continued. Havlíček concluded his speech by focusing on business. “We must involve businesses in a major way. I emphasized this last year. Forget about the public sector making a restart. The only ones who can do it are representatives of the business sector, employers, maybe small business owners. They must generate high profits and added value, they must employ people, pay good wages, because then people will buy goods, and logically, that will drive up the GDP. Only successful companies can invest and export, and that’s what we need. Our job is to do everything to ensure that Czech businesses make substantial profits. We’ll create an optimal investment, tax, and technological environment for them. But let’s add one more thing: they will also pay substantial taxes. The solution is not to increase taxes and contributions, but to ensure they are collected effectively - that’s fair and a win-win.” Later, Havlíček also visited the mobile classroom, which he has a personal connection to. “This mobile classroom, which I couldn’t pass by at the fair, is literally my brainchild. Four years ago, while at the Ministry of Industry and Trade and with the support of Education Minister Robert Plaga, I launched a pilot project for a new subject in primary schools called ‚Man and Technology.’ We acquired two educational trucks, which have since been traveling to Czech schools, where students learn to work with new technologies. “Sadly, the education minister in Fiala’s government has abandoned the initiative, and practical education with cutting-edge technology remains out of reach. Once we return to office, we will complete the project, increase the number of trucks, and introduce this much-needed subject,” Karel Havlíček remarked at the fair.
Karel Havlíček in the mobile classroom, which he helped to launch.
