From Eurogovernmentalism to Hard Euroscepticism—Genesis of the Czech Liberal-Conservative “Anti-EU” Stream

An analysis of the development and programmatic standpoint of the Czech liberal-conservative political stream. The article uses the concept of Euroscepticism as presented in the works of Szczerbiak and Taggart, and Kopecký and Mudde as the theoretical framework and develops this concept based on Petr Kaniok’s new typology. In the first part of the analysis is a discussion of the development of the Eurosceptic faction within the Civic Democratic Party (ODS) and changes in the party’s position towards the EU. It also lends understanding to the Eurosceptic faction within the ODS, with Václav Klaus as its supporter and think tanks related to him, as the incubator for the establishment of the Party of Free Citizens (SSO) in 2009. In the second part of the analysis, the focus is on the party’s programme and its position within the European political arena. The analysis also includes a discussion of the most visible proclamations of the party leaders against the EU and the European integration process. The analysis is framed with the general debate about the liberal-conservative party family and its development at the EU level.