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By Jason Hovet PRAGUE (Reuters) - The Czech government has ditched a long tradition of frugality over the last few years by piling tax cuts and wage hikes on top of pandemic spending, putting the country s debt on course to hit critical levels much faster than anyone expected. That leaves an unenviable challenge for whichever party wins this weekend s national election in the Czech Republic. The Czech Finance Ministry forecasts public debt will hit 43.5% of GDP this year, up from 30% in 2019, after two years of record budget deficits, and the International Monetary Fund estimates the country will have the second-fastest rising debt burden in the European Union by 2025. Wary of frightening away voters, all political parties have ruled out major tax hikes and shown no plans for other painful measures, but the next government faces a likely rude awakening and tough choices to find new revenue and cut spending. The (next) government will have to come up with immediate savings, and there mu

Czech republicEva zamrazilovaJason hovetPavel sobisekSusan fentonPirate partyInternational monetary fundFiscal councilEuropean unionCzech finance ministryMinister andrej babisMinister alena schillerovaCivic democratsMacro economicsDebt marketEconomic indicator