No-trust anti-trust

Chair Petr Rafaj of the Czech antitrust office went on Czech TV yesterday to try to persuade the public that it wasn't his office that leaked news to Euro.cz of an impending raid at ČEZ. Although the EU Commission said that the Czech office was the only one that knew of the raid in advance, a nervous, perspiring Rafaj denied that his office was the leaker. He said that he has full trust in his coworkers. The bigger question is whether his coworkers can have trust in him. Word is spreading around Prague that Rafaj leaked the news of the raid to Interior Minister and ČEZman Martin Pecina and that all interested parties were then quickly informed. To some, this makes Rafaj and Pecina heroes. To others, it makes them suspected criminals committing a breach of professional secret. Not much investigation into the leak can now be expected from either of them, so this case will be an important test of the EU's ability - and willingness - to bring to justice high-ranking Czechs who blatantly violate EU rules. [Czech Republic European Union competition]