Czech government threatened as PM's party stays split on tax

PRAGUE (Reuters) - The ruling Czech Civic Democrats will try to delay a confidence vote tied to an unpopular law to raise taxes, after failing on Tuesday to quell a rebellion by six of its lawmakers that threatens to bring down the cabinet.

The government has insisted it use tax hikes and spending cuts to bring its budget deficit below 3 percent of gross domestic product next year, a stance that has brought the cost of borrowing to all-time lows but also extended the longest recession in the European Union's emerging east.