The ministry will not hinder the construction of UK campuses, said its rector

Prague - The Ministry of Education will not take any steps that would hinder the construction of the University of Charles's campus in the context of the initiated proceedings regarding the withdrawal of funding. After a meeting with Minister of Education Mikuláš Bek (STAN), university rector Milena Králíčková told ČTK and Czech Television today. She agreed with him on the necessity to remove obstacles that would impede construction.

"The process has been initiated, however, we have now been assured that no steps will be taken that would lead to the withdrawal of that funding," Králíčková stated today regarding the proceedings. The construction of the Albertov campus in Prague and Mephared 2 in Hradec Králové will continue according to the rector, even with the use of European funding. On Monday, a spokesman for the Ministry of Education told ČTK that the initiation of the proceedings is a formal step and its announcement does not anticipate its outcome.

The rector noted that the proceedings will last weeks to months. "Some documents will be collected, but we are aiming to continue working with the ministry on finalizing the completion of the construction," she emphasized. The Ministry of Education will now negotiate with the ministries of finance and industry and trade, she added.

According to Králíčková, the construction of the Albertov campus will not be completed in the middle of next year, but likely in early 2028. The project is delayed due to archaeological research and necessary adjustments to the building's foundation due to geological conditions, Králíčková said. The European Commission has been informed of the delay in a timely manner, she noted.

The construction of the Albertov campus is part of a chapter in which the Czech Republic has committed to building approximately 95,000 square meters of new university facilities. This chapter also includes the project for the Mephared 2 research center in Hradec Králové, which is part of Charles University, and the BioPharma Hub of Masaryk University in Brno. The expected date for the completion of the Biocentrum at the Albertov campus is April 2028, spokesperson for Charles University Jan Bumba previously informed.

The funding from the National Recovery Plan (NPO) is received by the Czech Republic from the European Commission after meeting the relevant milestones supported by accounting and other documents, for example. The provider at the national level, in this case, the Ministry of Education, decides on the funds.

Representatives of Charles University and Masaryk University have been negotiating with the Ministry of Education over the past few weeks regarding the use of NPO funds due to the delay in the construction of the campus at Albertov in Prague. According to earlier information, the goal of the negotiations was to find a solution that would allow maximum utilization of the NPO funds designated for higher education and simultaneously ensure the continuation of the construction of three planned campuses. According to earlier information, the final agreement on the distribution of NPO funds was to be confirmed at the end of August. However, the Ministry of Finance warned that it considers the preferred solution variant to be highly risky.

According to Minister Bek, the initiation of proceedings to withdraw funding is logical when, despite expectations, an agreement among all parties on a solution was not reached by the end of August. "But negotiations continue on finding a way that would minimize damage and risks for higher education institutions," Bek told Deník N last week.