Tsjechisch voorzitterschap in 2009 zet in op verdere liberalisatie (en)

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - With almost two years still to go, the Czech government has opted for "Europe without barriers" to be the key message of the country's 2009 EU presidency.

With France and Sweden on board as presidency trio partners, Prague aims to lobby for free movement of people, services and liberalised trade policy.

The Czech Republic will be the second new EU member state to take over the bloc's six-month rotating chair in January 2009, following Slovenia in early 2008.

The government's EU committee led by the centre-right prime minister Mirek Topolanek decided on Thursday (1 March) that apart from an emphasis on free movement within Europe, Prague will focus on sustainable and safe energy, transatlantic relations, Balkan enlargement as well as further justice and security measures.

But the key agenda for the country will be issues that have so far caused friction between "old" and "new" member states, with the Czechs featuring as a loud and active player.

In 2009, the old member states that opted to introduce temporary restrictions against workers from the eight countries from central and eastern Europe that joined the EU in 2004 will decide whether to prolong them for the second and last time - until 2011.

While the UK, Sweden and Ireland did not put in place such measures in 2004, and Greece, Finland, Spain and Italy dropped them later, the rest of the 15 countries last year expanded the barriers for another three years and in 2009 they have to decide whether to do the same for two more years.

The Czech Republic is planning to create pressure to prevent them taking the extension, although Austria and Germany - the country's own neighbours - have already hinted they could keep the restrictions.

Also in 2009, the disputed services directive will come into force, with member states obliged under the new rules to create conditions for service providers from other EU countries to do business on their territory with no extra requirements and under simpler procedures.

On top of this, the Czech Republic will in two years be one of the key moderators of the debate on future EU financing - based on the bloc's reform of both the overall budget and its agriculture policy.

The revision of the budget was pushed by the UK during bitter discussions in 2005 over the seven-year financial plan but it could see a change not only of the farming bill - opposed by France - but also a new solution to the so called British rebate, the money that London gets back from the EU budget.

The current Czech centre-right government is stressing its liberal and pro-reform views in connection with Europe, but according to analysts, given its own weak position on the national scene, it may no longer be in power in 2009.