The new Czech minority cabinet led by billionaire Andrej Babis lost a parliamentary confidence vote on Tuesday, after lawmakers spurned the populist who has been charged with EU subsidy fraud.

"The parliament refused to voice confidence in the cabinet," parliament speaker Radek Vondracek said. 

The vote was 117 against the cabinet to 78 in favour, with five abstentions in the 200-member legislature.

Babis, whose populist ANO movement won a general election in October, will have another try at forming a cabinet, following a pledge from Czech President Milos Zeman. However he insists that Babis should prove he has the necessary backing for the new government. 

Source: AFP